No Need for Dragonballs Ep 4 Road Trip
by Russ
Summary: none


Ep 3 - Road Trip  
  
Send all hate mail / fan mail to scottm@hot.rr.com  
  
Rain. It is the lifeblood of the Earth. It's the one thing that sustains every living organism that exists on this blue planet. Without it, things could not survive, and the planet would become a barren wasteland, with its only value being the minerals that exist below the Earth's surface.  
It was currently raining outside of the Masaki home in a gentle shower, replenishing the ground with water and giving the plants and animals a much-needed drink. It also managed to cool the outdoor temperature down to a pleasant sixty-five degrees, making it feel very comfortable, and bringing needed relief from the freak weather of the previous day. Usually accompanying a rainfall, a feeling of sadness or depression dampens a person's spirits for the day. This was not the case for the Masaki household.  
Stirring slightly from her night of blissful slumber, Ryoko snuggled a little closer to Tenchi, resting her head on his chest, and listening to the soft beating of his heart. This heart beats for her, now and forever. It was more soothing than whatever emotion she had ever felt in her entire life, and it was one thing that she was never going to let go of, or have taken away from her. Her destiny lay with him and to always be with him. The love she has for him is total and absolute, no matter what circumstance presents itself. It was the one thing that had made her truly happy, and it was now hers. All hers.  
When Ryoko had moved, she gently woke Tenchi out of his sleep. He opened his eyes slowly, trying to become accustomed to the dim light that filtered through his bedroom window and the skylight above his bed. Slowly bringing his mind and eyes into focus, he looked down toward the warm feeling on his chest, where Ryoko laid her head, with her arms wrapped around him. He smiled to himself and thought about the previous night, and how he had finally allowed his true feelings for her to unlock themselves from his heart and pour forth, like a raging river through a canyon. It was a night that he'd never forget, and it was one that he wanted to cherish forever.  
He thought about the many times she had expressed her love for him, but he was too afraid to return it. He had loved Ryoko for a long time, but he didn't know when he first started to. It was just too impossible to tell when he began to feel how he did toward her. But it didn't really matter anymore. She was here, now, with him, quietly dozing, as he listened to her soft, rhythmic breathing.  
Tenchi's smile increased in size, as he took in a deep breath and let out a quiet yawn. Ryoko moaned very softly. He reached down, being very careful and gentle, he ran his fingers through her cyan hair, enjoying the feel of its softness. He reached up and did it again, as a very soft rumble started to come from her. He grinned and felt very contented, and a little amused that she was quietly purring beside him.  
Trying to increase the intensity of her soft rumble, he continued to pet her, now running his hand down her back, gently scratching around her shoulder blades. As expected, her rumbling increased in volume and intensity, as she took in a deep breath. Her kitten eyes opened themselves slowly, as she stretched herself out and let out a light yawn. Her gaze wandered up Tenchi's chest, and finally locked into his eyes, filled with love, contentedness, and happiness. She smiled, ever so sweetly, as she carefully moved herself up to Tenchi's shoulder, and kissed him on the lips.  
"Good morning, lover," she whispered, continuing to softly purr for him.  
"Hello, Ryoko," he returned, wrapping his arm around her, pulling her a little closer, and giving her a little kiss. "Did you sleep well?"  
She moaned softly and smiled, returning his embrace. "Thank you," she said, quietly.  
"What for?" Tenchi continued to gaze at her soft complexion, smiling into those golden eyes.  
"For finally telling me… and showing me how much you love me last night. That was the best thing that has ever happened to me." She squeezed him tighter, kissing him again. "I love you, Tenchi."  
He smiled down at her, and felt a small lump in his throat, but he did his best to swallow it down. "I love you too, Ryoko," he said, as a tidal wave of relief washed over his body and soul.  
Yes! He had done it! He finally gathered up the courage to tell her he loved her, and mean it, with all of his heart. It felt so good to finally be able to tell her the words he had felt, but was too afraid to say. Ryoko had no idea how much those words struck home with her, until she finally heard them for herself. A happiness that words could not describe cascaded through her heart, giving her a feeling of unsurpassed peace and tranquility. After a year and a half of pursuing, a year and a half of begging, tears, pleas, fights, and hardships, it all finally came down to those three little words, which he finally told her, after so long.  
She took in a deep breath, savoring that little phrase, and locking it into her heart. "Ohhh, Tenchi," she moaned, sensually. "Say that again," she begged, looking into his face. "Please."  
"I love you, Ryoko. More than words can say."  
The tears started streaming down her cheeks as she kissed him, hard, almost as if she was trying to suck out his soul and make it her own. Tenchi looked at her, almost in shock after she released him.  
"Ryoko? What's the matter?" he asked in worry. "Did I do something wrong?"  
She gazed back into his brown eyes lovingly as the tears continued to flow freely, and shook her head. "No. You did everything right. I love you so much, Tenchi. More than even you yourself realize."  
He gently clasped her cheek in his hand, using his thumb to tenderly wipe away her tears. She closed her eyes and took his hand in hers, rubbing her cheek in his palm, as she sniffled quietly. After a moment, she carefully removed his hand from her face and opened her eyes, pulling herself closer to him, then gave him another kiss, which he wholeheartedly returned, squeezing her tightly. Her tears subsided a moment later, and she continued to smile for him.  
"I love you very much, Ryoko. I just wish I had the courage to tell you that sooner."  
"Shhh," she chided him. "Just hold me for a while. I want to savor every waking moment with you." She rested her head on the pillow next to Tenchi, only a few inches away from his face. He rolled onto his side to face her, returning her gaze, which was bursting with overwhelming love and happiness. They both gently caressed each other, allowing their hands to softly roam each other, feeling each other's warmth, both of them ignoring the passage of time and the sound of the raindrops that continually pelted the windowsill outside of his bedroom window.  
"I wish this moment would last forever, Tenchi."  
"I do too, Ryoko." He continued to softly pet her, and her him, as the minutes ticked by, but was ignored by the two lovers.  
Out of nowhere, Tenchi's stomach croaked quietly, but not quietly enough. They both stopped and stared at each other, before they both burst out in a fit of the giggles.  
"I guess it's time for breakfast," he said, stealing a glance at the clock on his nightstand. He turned back toward her, smiling broadly. "Are you hungry?"  
Before she had the opportunity to answer, her own stomach rumbled a response, drowning out her soft purring. She blushed lightly, and then started giggling again. "Does that answer your question?" she asked, smiling, as the sound of her contentedness once again became the only sound in the bedroom.  
"Do you want to get up and get some breakfast with me?"  
Sighing tenderly, she nodded her head.  
He chuckled softly. "Okay then," he said, giving her another quick peck in the lips, then letting go of her and sliding himself out from under the warm covers and into the coolness of his room. Casually moving over to his dresser, he pulled out a clean pair of boxer shorts and put them on. After that, he went to his closet and picked out a new pair of shorts and one of the new shirts they bought yesterday at the mall, and dressed, taking care to cut the tags off the shirt and shorts.  
Looking back toward the bed after he was finished, he saw that she was sitting on top of the covers, dressed in a pretty pink blouse, which covered her whole body. He smiled and looked her over, noticing that the pink brought out the gold in her eyes, but contrasted nicely with her cyan hair.  
"You look even more beautiful today than you ever did, Ryoko," he said, slowly moving to the bed and offering her his hand with a humble little bow.  
She smiled and giggled, graciously accepting his invitation, floating off of the bed and standing up on the floor. "You're going to spoil me now, is that it?"  
"You don't like being spoiled?" he asked, smiling at her gorgeous face.  
"I think I can get used to it," she said, wrapping her arms around her treasure and kissing him tenderly.  
Once again, both their stomachs growled at both of them, reminding them that they were hungry and wanted food. Now. And they didn't want to wait anymore. They both looked at each other and giggled lightly as they left the room to go eat breakfast.  
  
Aeka slowly awakened to the soothing, quiet pelting of the rain against her window. Moaning softly, she unconsciously stretched herself out under her blanket, rolling onto her back, and took in a deep breath, letting it out in a refreshing yawn. Her violet eyes slowly opened themselves, adjusting themselves to the light coming in through her bedroom window. She smiled to herself, since in a very good mood this morning, despite the depressing rain outside her window. Looking over at the vacant futon next to her, she realized Sasami must have gotten up a little while ago and started on breakfast for everybody. Not one to disappoint, she tossed back her covers, feeling the coolness of the air rush to her skin, giving her small goose bumps. Thankful that today wasn't another scorcher, she got up and went to her closet and chose a red kimono and a violet sash, tossing those onto her futon, and withdrew a white undershirt from her closet, adding that to the pile. Taking care to remove her nightgown and hang it up, she dressed herself in the clothes she picked, and admired herself in the bedroom mirror. Noticing the glitter under her clothes, her smile broadened, as she looked at the small phoenix that hung around her neck, the gift from Tenchi and Ryoko.  
That gift was the best thing she has ever gotten from anybody in her entire life. Sure, it wasn't no where near the craftsmanship, or quality, or even the monetary value of the other gifts she was given during her marriage meetings, but the meaning behind it was worth so much more. "It means a sign of unsurpassed beauty," Tenchi had told her. She smiled even broader, knowing that Tenchi still thought she was very beautiful. The fact that he was with Ryoko didn't matter anymore, because he still cared about her and her feelings. Even Ryoko did as well, and it filled her with pride and almost indescribable happiness that her former worst enemy would choose a gift like that to give her.  
And then there was Russ, who even though behaved like a child yesterday, was still considerate enough to buy her those two videos that she was going to get for herself. In a way, she missed having fights like that with Ryoko. Even though yesterday's fight was not physical, it still felt good to behave like a stuck up little child once again. It had been nearly a year since she had fought like that, and it felt really good, and it relaxed her considerably. Knowing she didn't mean any harm yesterday, and assuming Russ didn't either, made her feel at peace. He was a nice man, and so far had shown that he cares about other people's feelings, and that was important to her. A man who cares about nothing except for himself is very selfish, and she wanted no part of a person like that.  
She noticed that Russ was quite different from other men she had met before, even Tenchi, but he had a charm all his own. He had incredible strength and power, but never used it, unless he was training himself or someone needed his help. Even with his enormous ability to create death and destruction, he didn't seem to want to do stuff like that, but rather prevent it. He had a wonderful talent for music, and was remarkably humble, always thanking people and never bragging about his abilities to others. On top of all that, he was quite handsome, albeit not as handsome as Tenchi.  
Satisfied that her appearance was adequate, she left her room and went downstairs, seeing Tenchi and Ryoko on the couch, gazing into each other's faces which were filled with love and… something else that she couldn't quite put her finger on. But anyway, it was none of her business, so she smiled as she made her way downstairs.  
"Good morning, Ryoko and Tenchi. You guys look like you're in a good mood today," she said cheerfully, filled with happiness herself.  
"Good morning, Aeka. You look like you're in a good mood yourself," Ryoko answered, as Tenchi turned toward the princess.  
"Hi, Aeka. Did you sleep well?" he asked with a big smile.  
"Yes! I'm both in a good mood and I had a wonderful night's rest. The rain really helps me sleep since it drowns out most other noises in the house."  
"Yeah, I noticed that too," Ryoko said, eyeing Tenchi mischievously. He ignored it though, much to her disappointment.  
"Well, I'm going to go see if Sasami needs any help," he said, making her way to the kitchen, where the sounds of pots and pans scraping over the stove could be heard. A quiet humming was also noticed coming through the door. She took a quick glance around the room. "Where's Russ? Isn't he up yet?"  
"No, not yet. At least, I don't think so. I haven't seen him this morning," Tenchi answered.  
"Hmmm." Aeka went into the kitchen were Sasami was busy as a bee at the stove.  
She turned away from stirring the miso soup when she heard the kitchen door slide open. "Good morning, Aeka!" she said in her usual, cheerful demeanor, running up to her sister and giving her a warm hug.  
"Good morning, Sasami. You look well rested and happy today."  
"Yes I am. I don't know why though. It's raining, which means I can't go outside and play, but I feel good anyway."  
Ryo-Ohki, perched on top of the little girl's head, meowed her greeting to Aeka.  
"And good morning to you too, Ryo-Ohki," she giggled, petting the cabbit on the head, eliciting a light purr from her. "Well, can I help you with anything in here, Sasami?"  
"Not really. I've just about finished off everything. I'm just waiting for the miso to finish cooking and then breakfast will be ready. If you want, you can carry out these plates to the table. That will be helpful to me," she offered, smiling sweetly.  
"Okay." She reached into one of the drawers and drew out a handful of chopsticks, and picked up one of the many plates that were on the counter, being careful not to spill anything. She went back into the living room and saw that Nobuyuki was now awake, and was busily pounding Tenchi on the back, who's face was as red as the kimono she was wearing.  
"It's about time, Tenchi! I'm so proud to know that you've finally grown up into a healthy man!" He continued slapping him on the back, and then gave him a crushing hug.  
"Daaaaaaaad! Cut that out! It's embarrassing! And how did you know anyway?" he choked out, just before his dad released him. Ryoko was smiling broadly, clearly pleased with Nobuyuki's reaction.  
"I'm just so proud, son! It would've been great if you let me videotape it! I always wanted to record your development in life! I had gotten up late last night to go to the bathroom and I had heard you two in your room," he said, tears in his eyes. "I was going to record it, but I decided that I should leave you alone for your first time."  
Both Tenchi and Ryoko stared at him. Ryoko thought it would have been fun, and Tenchi thought it was the craziest thing he ever heard. And what was he doing, eavesdropping on them?  
Aeka set the food down on the table, thinking about what Nobuyuki had said, as she returned to the kitchen to gather up the rest of the food. "…grown up to be a healthy man…" Where did she hear that before? Suddenly, it clicked. They were all sitting around the table, shortly after she had arrived on Earth to rescue Mihoshi. They were all eating breakfast, and out of nowhere, Ryoko started babbling about pickles and ice cream. Nobuyuki picked up on it and asked if she was pregnant. Shortly thereafter, Ryoko raced out of the room and apparently had given birth to an egg. But the killer was when she told everybody that it was the egg that she had made with Tenchi. Nobuyuki went crazy with pride, slapping Tenchi on the shoulders in much the same manner as he was currently doing, and he had said nearly the same exact thing. Does that mean… Tenchi and Ryoko… made a baby? No. It's too soon for that. But… maybe they made love last night? Yes, that has to be it. What else could or would spark THAT kind of reaction out of Tenchi's father, the resident pervert of the house?  
She looked up at both of them, as they gazed into each other's eyes. Tenchi felt another pair of eyes on him as she glanced over the couch, directly into Aeka's face. Ryoko noticed his appearance, and she too turned to look at Aeka. She looked back at them, and smiled. "Congratulations, you two. I'm very happy for the both of you."  
Tenchi, Ryoko, and Nobuyuki all facefaulted straight to the floor in shock. They slowly recovered and looked back at Aeka, who was still smiling broadly, and she nodded her head.  
"Aeka?" Tenchi began.  
"Don't worry, Tenchi. I'm fine with it. I've known for a long time that you two would eventually begin doing that kind of thing, and I'm happy for the both of you. Really." And she was, too.  
Both Tenchi and Ryoko heaved a huge sigh of relief, and they both smiled at her. "Thank you for being so understanding, Aeka. That means a lot to me," Ryoko said, nodding her head at her.  
"That goes for me too, Aeka. Thank you."  
"Think nothing of it. And I mean it when I say, congratulations." She bowed toward them. "I'll be right back with the rest of breakfast. I hope you're good and hungry!" Turning to go back into the kitchen, she looked over her shoulder and flashed them another smile, and disappeared through the doorway. She let out a huge sigh of relief, and it felt really good to finally be at peace with both of them. It was over between her and Tenchi, and there was no need to fret over it any longer, and it felt good to finally reach that point.  
Sasami turned around when her sister re-entered. "What was that all about?"  
"Oh, nothing, Sasami. I'll tell you about it when you're older," she informed her, smiling.  
"Darn it! You're always saying that. And judging by the way father was acting, I have a pretty good guess at what went on between Tenchi and Ryoko last night. But I must say, I'm happy you're taking it so well," she said, hugging her sister again. "It makes me happy to see everybody else happy. I don't want to see anybody fight anymore. And now it seems that nobody has to."  
Aeka sighed. "You may be little, but you sure don't act like it sometimes," she said, patting her sister's shoulder. "Come on, let's get breakfast out to the table. Everybody's starving."  
"Yes, you're right. The miso is done. Go ahead and take these two plates out there, and I'll get the rest. Thank you, Aeka." She turned off the burner to the stove and poured the soup into a large bowl, and then she fished a ladle out of one of the drawers and put that alongside it. She carefully lifted the soup bowl, and being careful not to spill it, she followed Aeka out to the breakfast table, where Nobuyuki, Ryoko, Tenchi, and Aeka were all seated.  
"Where are Kiyone, Mihoshi, Washu, and Russ?" Sasami asked, looking at the vacant seats.  
"Well, Washu is probably busy in her lab as usual, Kiyone and Mihoshi went out to look for an apartment nearby, and Russ… well, I have no idea about him," Tenchi informed her.  
"I wonder if he's a sleepy head like you are, Tenchi," Sasami teased. "I guess I'll just have to play a little prank on him," she giggled evilly as she got up from the table.  
"Sasami! What are you doing?" Aeka looked at her sister in horror.  
She cackled sinisterly as she disappeared into the kitchen and returned with a can of whipped cream. Glancing over at her sister with an evil gleam in her eye, she quietly ascended the stairway, heading toward Russ' room. Aeka rolled her eyes and started giggling.  
"He's going to get it. Sasami is the king of pranks here," Ryoko giggled. "Not even I can match what she does."  
"I know. Give her a reason to pull a prank and you're history," Aeka said, still giggling quietly as she began sipping her soup. "Oh, listen to me. I shouldn't encourage behavior like that."  
"Hopefully Russ will be a good sport about it," Tenchi said, worriedly.  
"I'm sure he will be," Aeka responded. "Remember yesterday at the mall?"  
Tenchi and Ryoko both started laughing. "Yeah, that was quite amusing. Did you feel better after that?" Tenchi asked.  
"Yeah, actually. It felt good to behave like that again. It gets boring acting so uptight and regal all the time. It was a nice distraction from the ordinary."  
"Well anyway, Sasami should be in Russ' room by now. Let's wait and see what happens," Tenchi snickered.  
  
Russ was sprawled over the top of his bed, lying on his chest with his arm dangling over the edge closest to the doorway. The window to his room was open, but the rain was falling in a way that it didn't enter the house. His head lay on the pillow, but he never slid himself under the blankets. He was still clothed in the garments he had on from yesterday, except they were not covering him very well. The shirt was bunched up near his chest, leaving his abs and his lower back exposed, and his shorts were hitched up in such a way that it was giving him a wedgie. He was trying to breathe through his nose, but as usual, it was clogged, and he wound up drawing in loud, raspy breaths through his mouth.  
Sasami quietly slid back the door to his room and stepped inside, spying Russ on the bed. She stopped and froze, and had to calm herself down to keep from laughing at his posture. Tiptoeing over to his bed, she shook up the can of whipped cream and squirted a healthy amount into his hand that was dangling over the edge. Satisfied that there was plenty, she looked around the room for something to tickle his nose with. Unfortunately, there was nothing that would work, so she improvised. She silently moved behind the headboard and bent down, gently blowing a stream of air into his face. He wrinkled his nose in response and stirred slightly, but immediately resumed his heavy slumber. Determined, she blew a little harder into his face, which invoked the same response.  
"Geez, what's he made out of? Stone?" she muttered to herself, trying to keep from giggling. She took in a deeper breath and again blew directly into his face, and this time it had the desired effect. He brought his hand up and smacked it right into his visage, spreading the whipped cream everywhere. Sasami couldn't contain herself anymore and she exploded laughing, rousing Russ out of his sleep.  
Not totally awake, but moderately aware that someone was laughing at him, Russ removed his hand from his face, which felt very strange. He closed his hand and felt something very soft and cool squish between his fingers. Slowly opening up his eyes, he looked into his hand, which was now covered in white froth. Changing his focus over to the sound of laughing that stood near the door, he could see Sasami holding a can of whipped cream. Looking back to his hand, he stuck a finger into his mouth and confirmed his suspicions. He slowly sat up and reached up with his other hand, making sure that it was clean, and wiped the remaining whipped cream off of his face, licking up what he missed. He then cleaned off his other hand and stood up, now wide-awake.  
"Ha! Ha! It's breakfast time! Come and get it before it gets cold," she laughed before racing out of the room. He charged out the door, hot on her heels.  
"You do realize, this means war!" he shouted after her, chasing her down the stairs. She raced behind the couch as Russ tore into the kitchen. He returned a moment later with a can of whipped cream of his own. He quickly began shaking it and removed the top. "Come here. I've got a present for yah!"  
He began to circle the couch as Sasami giggled uncontrollably, still shaking her own can of the stuff and making sure to stay out of reach. Everybody at the table exploded laughing, watching Russ and Sasami square off. "So, you're a little prankster, aren't you? I must inform you, that you're totally outclassed," he cackled evilly, slowly inching his way around the sofa. "If you want a prank war, you're on!" He leapt over the couch as Sasami tore around the table and hid behind Aeka, still giggling away. Aeka, on the other hand, got a look of worry on her face as Russ approached the opposite end of the table, and began slowly circling again.  
"Okay, that's enough you two. Don't make a mess, okay?" Aeka said. "I'm trying to enjoy my breakfast here."  
"She started it," Russ protested, but decided he was hungry when he saw all the food. "Okay, Sasami, you win this one, but I'll get you back. You can bet on it." He grinned, giving her one of the most sinister looks he could muster. He replaced the cap on his can of whipped cream and returned it to the kitchen, then emerged a moment later and took his seat next to Aeka. Sasami sat on the opposite side of her sister, continuing to giggle. He looked at her, continuing to give an evil little grin as he picked up a bowl and filled it with rice, which he consumed in a few seconds. Filling the same bowl with the miso soup, he swallowed it all almost in one gulp.  
Eyeing Sasami, who was also watching him out of the corner of her eye, he covertly picked up a grain of rice that was stuck to his bowl, placed it between his fingers, and flicked it at her behind Aeka's back. Sasami noticed it, and gave him her own little evil grin, as she discretely picked up her own rice grain and flung it at him, again behind Aeka's back. Russ saw it coming, so he reached up, faster than the eye could see and grabbed it before it hit him, and then returned his hand to where it was. Sasami stared at him, dumbfounded, since she couldn't see where the rice grain went. Russ started snickering like crazy, drawing Aeka's attention.  
"What's so funny?"  
Ryoko and Tenchi were both giggling and chuckling lightly, which irked Aeka even more.  
"What is so funny?" she asked again, becoming more confused by the minute.  
Her inquisitive look only served to get everybody at the table laughing even harder. Aeka shrugged her shoulders and went back to eating. Russ took the grain of rice that he grabbed from Sasami and flung it across the table at Ryoko, which hit her in the cheek. Her face went to surprise, and her smile turned evil, as she flung her own grain of rice across the table, which nailed Russ right on the nose. Since he was now focused on Ryoko, Sasami flung another grain of rice at Russ, nailing him in the side of the head. He cocked an eyebrow at both of them as Tenchi was doing his best to control himself and keep from laughing out loud.  
Sasami, Ryoko, and Russ all looked at him with an evil gleam in their eyes, as they all opened fire with rice grains, pelting him in the head. Aeka saw that and looked harshly at all three of them.  
"Stop that right now! You're behaving like children," she said sternly, as she glared at her sister. Unbeknownst to her, she labeled herself as a target. When she returned to eating her breakfast, Russ looked at the three of them and gave a very slight nod, grinning evilly. Tenchi, Ryoko, Russ, and Sasami all loaded their fingers with rice grains and flung them all at Aeka, who was pelted from all sides. She looked up in total surprise as she glared at all four of the participants. Somehow, Nobuyuki managed to slip away during this little fiasco, sensing that something was going to happen.  
Fed up with their little game, she picked up her rice bowl and dumped the entire contents over Russ' head. He sat there in complete shock, as did everybody else, as Aeka grinned triumphantly at him.  
"Serves you right for behaving so immaturely," she declared.  
Suddenly, he started laughing really hard, as he reached up and brushed some of the rice off of his head.  
"FOOD FIGHT!" he roared, as he reached over to the serving bowl, grabbed a heaping handful of rice grains, and shoved them right in Aeka's face, making the ball of rice explode everywhere. Everybody exploded laughing, except for Aeka, who was now extremely red in the face and trembling with anger. She reached over and picked up a handful of rice and tried to return the favor, but Russ opened his mouth up real wide and caught the clump of rice, chewing and swallowing in a few seconds. He grinned widely and stuck out his tongue.  
"Missed me," he taunted, picking up another handful of rice and throwing it at Sasami, who was rolling around on the floor, laughing. He nailed her in the side, making the rice grains go everywhere.  
Total chaos ensued from that point. Everybody reached in toward the middle of the table in an attempt to grab whatever food they could get their hands on, picking targets and flinging the food at everyone else. The fight lasted another few minutes until they ran out of ammunition, but everybody, even Aeka, were laughing heartily. Ryo-Ohki had managed to hide behind the couch during the entire fiasco, so she emerged unscathed. It was just at that moment when Washu decided to come out of her lab. She stopped, stared, and then facefaulted.  
"What HAPPENED in here?" she exclaimed while looking at the huge mess they created.  
"We ate breakfast, what else did you expect?" Russ said casually, through his constant snickering. Aeka, Tenchi, Ryoko and Sasami all looked at Washu innocently, as she continued to stare dumbfounded.  
"You guys had a food fight, and DIDN'T INVITE ME?" she yelled, now laughing along with them. "Oh man, what a mess," she said, trying to navigate around the war zone, trying to make her way toward the kitchen. "Looks like you kids had fun. Sasami? Did you save me anything?"  
The little blue haired princess sat up, trying to catch her breath from laughing so hard. "Y... yes," she panted. "It's in its usual place in the fridge."  
"Thank you, Sasami. Oh, by the way, I finished the bathroom. Just go over there," she instructed, pointing down the hallway to the bathroom. "When a woman opens the door, it goes to the women's bath. When a guy opens the door, it opens to the normal bathroom. I took the onsen down that was over the lake, so that's all taken care of." Receiving her acknowledgement, she disappeared into the kitchen.  
"Whew! Now I haven't had that much fun in years!" Russ said, taking in a deep breath and letting it out in a contented sigh.  
Everybody nodded. "Yes, I have to agree, even though it was extremely childish," Aeka stated, picking some of the rice grains off of her kimono and hair.  
"For a minute I thought you were going to kill all of us," Russ said, smiling. "I'm glad you loosened up and had a little fun."  
"Yeah, no kidding. I always told you to stop being so uptight, princess," Ryoko agreed, trying to clean herself off a little. "But that was a lot of fun."  
"Yeah, but now we have to clean this mess," Tenchi groaned, as she surveyed the disaster. "It is going to take forever to get this place spotless again."  
"Not really. If we all work together, we can have this place cleaned up in no time," Russ said, standing up and shaking off his clothes. Everybody else looked at him, smiled and stood up, then tried to clean themselves off as best they could. "Well, shall we get busy?"  
"Yeah," they all said in unison, as Russ picked up all the dirty dishes and stacked them neatly in a pile. Tenchi retrieved the vacuum and Aeka grabbed the broom and dustpan, while Ryoko fetched the feather duster. Sasami and Russ carried the dirty dishes into the kitchen and started cleaning them up, while everybody else set to work cleaning the living room.  
Washu continued to watch them, smiling widely, as she thought about some of the fun times she used to have. Deciding that they'd be okay, she disappeared back into her lab, carrying her breakfast with her.  
  
A half hour later, they finished cleaning up the house, and then dispersed to do some activities to pass the time. Sasami sat down in front of the TV and fired up the playstation, tossing in a fighting game as Ryo-Ohki transformed into her child form. She picked up the second controller and meowed a challenge to Sasami, which she readily accepted. Tenchi went up to his room to continue his drawing that he was working on a few days ago, and Ryoko tried to doze off on his bed. Aeka picked up a cookbook and started reading some recipes that looked rather appetizing. Russ returned to his room and fetched the lyrics for the song he completed last night.  
He came back downstairs just as Sasami defeated Ryo-Ohki in their little contest. "Sasami?"  
She and the cabbit turned around. "Yeah? What is it?"  
Russ waved the sheet of paper in the air. "I finished the lyrics for the song last night. Here they are," he said, presenting it to her.  
"Oh wow! Cool!" She accepted the paper and looked at it, but her face quickly became a frown.  
"What's wrong?"  
"I can't read it," she said, looking up at him. "I'm sorry."  
"Oh! I didn't know you couldn't read roman characters. No problem. Come along with me and I'll read the lyrics to you, so you can write them down in Kanji."  
"Okay, that'll work. Where do you want to go?"  
"Lets go back to my room. At least there will be some privacy there," he said, starting back up the stairs and motioning for her to follow. She hesitated slightly, but followed anyway, against her better judgment. He noticed her hesitation though. "Don't worry, I'm not going to do anything," he said, looking over his shoulder. "Yet," he added with an evil cackle. She stopped in her tracks and looked at him fearfully. "Aw, come on. Seriously, I won't do anything. I promise."  
"Okay, if you say so."  
She and Ryo-Ohki followed him to his room and he shut the door behind them. "Okay," he began, sitting down on the bed. "Take out a piece of paper from the drawer on your right, and take one of the pencils or pens that you'll find in the middle drawer." She did as she was told. "Now, write down what I say in the form I tell you. It'll help keep rhythm."  
"Okay." She hunched over the desk, getting ready to write down what he said.  
"Now, the first line is…"  
  
About fifteen minutes later they finished, and Sasami was smiling widely. "This is a great song! I can't wait to hear the music that goes with it!"  
"Well, you want to go do it right now?"  
"Could you? Please?" she begged.  
"Sure. Let's go," he said, making his way toward the door. Her smile could've crushed the most depressed mood anyone would've had.  
All three of them made their way downstairs and Russ took a seat at the organ. He turned it on and loaded up the song into the computer, then turned toward Sasami, who was standing nearby. "I'll sing the song to the music first, so you'll know how it goes. Then you can sing it. You can go take a seat on the couch or pull up a chair. You don't have to stand there."  
"Yeah, I guess you're right." She walked over to the couch and sat down, still holding her sheet of paper. "You can sing too?"  
Russ put his own copy on top of the organ and read through it once more, hoping he'd get it right the first time. "Somewhat. I'm not that good. But anyway here goes nothing," he said, as he hit the play and record buttons on the computer. All he had left to add was the piano portion of the song, and he decided to do that now. He began playing the piano, and began to sing to the song titled, "I'm a Pioneer."  
  
[In Japanese]  
Did you know… I am a Pioneer,  
I'm on a secret mission,  
I travel the galaxy… and far beyond…  
  
A moment later, the song started kicking through the organ and Russ sang loud and clear, adding vibrato where it was appropriate. Sasami's smile brightened as she listened in amazement, both in the song and his incredible ability to sing. Aeka who was in the next room dropped her cookbook in astonishment and went into the living room, staring at Russ who was currently bouncing his foot with the drumbeat and singing. Ryoko and Tenchi, who were now just quietly talking with each other in his room, heard the song start playing. They both fell silent when they heard Russ' voice carry throughout the entire house, and they looked at each other in amazement. Getting up off the bed and chair, they went downstairs and stood next to Aeka, who was still standing in the same spot like a statue.  
For a moment, Russ stopped singing as the organ continued to play the instrumental part of the song. He smiled hugely at Sasami's excitement, but not noticing he had an audience. Quickly approaching the second verse of the song, he took in a deep breath and resumed singing, and Sasami read along with him.  
A couple minutes later, he turned back toward the organ and played the ending piano portion to the song, and faded it out. He saved the finished piece to the computer and turned back toward Sasami.  
"Your turn. You ready?"  
"R… Russ?" Aeka stammered out from her spot near the kitchen door. He whirled around and looked directly into her face, and turned hyper red.  
"Oh my god… How long have you been standing there? I'm so embarrassed. My voice isn't that good. Sorry you had to hear that noise."  
"Shut up," she said. "That was beautiful. You can sing. I can't believe it. You can play music AND SING!" she shouted, causing nearly every ounce of blood in Russ' body to rush to his face. He felt like he was going to pass out a moment later.  
"I… I'm not that good," he whispered, trying to calm down.  
Ryoko and Tenchi both started clapping, and Aeka with Sasami joined a moment later, showing appreciation for his performance. Russ just looked at the floor, clearly mortified.  
Aeka made her way over to Russ and put her arm around his shoulders and looked into his face. "Really. You have a beautiful voice. I'd love to hear you sing again."  
He shook his head rapidly and turned away. "You're just saying that. Sasami?"  
"What is it, Russ?"  
"It's your turn to sing this. It was meant for you, so let's give it a try, okay?" He was trembling slightly as Aeka squeezed his shoulder. "Why don't you fire up the karaoke machine so you can sing it nice and loud?"  
"Sure." She went to the machine and turned it on, withdrawing one of the microphones and testing the volume. "Is this good enough?" she asked through the system.  
"Yeah, that's good. Are you ready?"  
"Yup!" Her face beamed with excitement as Aeka, Ryoko, and Tenchi all sat down on the couch.  
"Okay. Here we go." He hit the play button on the organ and cranked up the volume a little, as the piano that he played a moment before began to come from the speakers, and Sasami began to sing her song, loudly, clearly, and perfectly.  
Five minutes later she finished, and the music faded away. Everybody gave her a big round of applause, as Sasami ran up to Russ and threw her arms around his neck, giving him a hug. He returned it with a big smile, now relaxed to the point where his skin color returned to normal.  
"You're a great singer, Sasami. I guess you liked that, eh?"  
"That was so cool! Thank you Russ! Can you do another one?"  
He looked taken aback, but he nodded his head. "Sure. I can do that for you."  
"Yay!" She bounced up and down on her heels in excitement. "I'll tell you a little about it later."  
"Oh? You have a special theme in mind?"  
"Yeah. I'll explain it to you later."  
"Okay. Well, I'm going to go train for the rest of the day. See you guys later," he said, standing up and opening the door.  
"What? It's raining! You'll catch pneumonia or something," Aeka said, standing up herself.  
"Nah. I need to train. Having it rain is pretty nice, since it'll keep me a lot cooler while I exercise. Besides, it helps build character," he said, smiling, as he stepped outside and closed the door behind him. A white flash burst around him for an instant, changing his clothes to a pretty violet karate gi, which matched Aeka's eye color. He quickly walked to the edge of the lake and looked at Ryu-Oh for a moment, and then he dropped down into the mud and began doing pushups, at five hundred ten times Earth's normal gravity.  
"He's crazy," she spat, glaring at him through the door.  
"Why? Because he loves exercising?" Ryoko asked, watching her.  
"No, because he has to exercise in the rain! It's crazy. He should have a room inside here or something for him to train in when we have bad weather outside."  
"Hmmm, I might be able to help with that."  
Everybody turned toward the Universe's Greatest Scientific Genius, who had just emerged from her lab. "I have developed a special simulator room where he can test his fighting skills against holograms! It's really my best piece of work for die hard trainers like him."  
"What does it do?"  
"Well, it's a special room where I can create computer sprites, which I can infuse with battle tactics from any known species or race that has a combative strategy, and he can fight against them."  
A chorus of "Huh?" came from around the room.  
"You don't get it? I don't know how I can explain it any simpler than that!" She looked completely flustered. "Well, basically it is a room where he can fight against computer opponents, much like Sasami does when she plays her video game. Russ would be one character, and he'd fight against another character, which is computer controlled."  
"Oh! That sounds really neat. I'm sure he'd like that."  
"I don't know. But I've only developed the room. I haven't put it together yet. I've still got tons of other experiments to take care of first. The gravity enhancer will be good enough for him for now."  
"Oh well. No big deal. I'm sure if you explain it to him, he'd be very happy," Aeka said. "I'd be happy too, since he won't have to train out in the rain anymore."  
"I suppose. Well, why don't you ladies try out the new bath? I'm sure you people would want to get cleaned up after your little war."  
Ryoko and Aeka looked at each and nodded their heads. Tenchi also nodded. "So when I open the bathroom door, I'll just get the normal bathroom?"  
"Yup."  
"Oh. I guess that's okay. I liked the onsen though."  
"Sorry Tenchi. I could modify your bathroom to something nicer, if you want."  
"Why don't you just give him access to the women's bath?" Ryoko asked.  
Tenchi blushed slightly. "No, that's okay. I don't mind that much."  
"Are you sure, Tenchi? It would be a snap to give you access to the bathroom," Washu offered.  
"I'm sure. Thanks though."  
"Suit yourself. If you still want access to the bathroom, one of the girls can let you in."  
"Okay."  
"Well, I need to get back to work. I just came out to put my dishes away. See you guys later."  
"Okay, and thanks, Little Washu," Aeka said, turning away from watching Russ.  
Nobuyuki poked his head around the corner. "Can I have access to the women's bath?"  
Everybody spun around and looked straight at him. "NO!" they all shouted at once.  
"Darn. Well, it's time for me to go to work. See you guys tonight. Save dinner for me. I think I'm going to be real late at the office again," he said, his face downcast.  
"Okay Dad. See you when you get home."  
  
June 19 approached very rapidly, which was the day they were all supposed to leave to go to Jurai to see the Startica festival, which begins on June 21. The house was bustling with hurried chaos, as everybody was trying to get his or her things packed in preparation to leave. People were racing all over the hallways, gathering up their belongings and desperately trying to remember not to forget anything. The excitement level was really high, and so was the stress level. Shoulders were bumped in nearly every hallway, and the constant thumping of feet rumbled throughout the house for most of the morning.  
Aeka was completely stressed out as she hurriedly packed all of her stuff in various luggage cases, trying to remember everything she needed to bring, such as her lipstick, perfume, her favorite kimono, hairdryer, and her hairbrush. The nagging feeling that she forgot something continued to prick at her conscience, but that was typical for anybody who was leaving for a trip.  
"Oh, I hate this! I know I forgot something!" she cried out, hurriedly double checking everything in her luggage. Sasami was nearby, packing her own things.  
"Don't worry so much, Aeka! We still have an hour to go before we actually have to leave. Besides, we're going home. If you forgot something, we could always get you a new one there." She put her hands on her hips and watched her sister frantically look around for an item that she had already packed away. She couldn't help but giggle.  
"It's not funny, Sasami! Now where did I put that thing," she muttered, rummaging through the suitcases and other belongings. Sasami rolled her eyes and continued folding her clothes and carefully putting them in her suitcase.  
"Mom is going to be so surprised to have us come home! I can't wait to see her again," she sighed, her eyes twinkling.  
Aeka smiled. "Yeah. It'll be nice to visit with mom, dad, Azaka, and Kamadake. Dad is probably going to be furious with me for staying away for so long." Her stress level climbed a few more notches.  
"I wouldn't worry about father. Mom can take care of him," she giggled. "Don't worry so much. It's not good for the complexion, as Ryoko always says."  
Aeka rolled her eyes. "You just too young to understand yet. You will, once you get older."  
"There's that age excuse again. Just don't let it get to you!"  
"That's easy for you to say since you don't have to worry about things like this."  
"Oh? And what don't I have to worry about?"  
"Um…" Aeka was at a loss for words.  
"See? You're all packed. Just relax a little. We'll get our stuff packed into Ryo-Ohki in a little while. Let's just carry our stuff down and set them outside on the porch. That's what everyone else is doing."  
She let out a sigh of defeat. "Okay. I guess you're right." Lifting up some of her luggage, she tried to carry it out into the hallway, but she packed so much stuff that it made her suitcases weigh a considerable amount. One of the suitcases slipped out of her hand and landed on the floor with a huge thump, echoing throughout the house. Russ just happened to be standing nearby, and he poked his head out of the room, wondering what was going on.  
"Need some help, Aeka?"  
"Could you please? I overstuffed my suitcases."  
"Sure, no problem." He turned back into the room and said something that Aeka couldn't make out, and then he walked over to her, bending down and lifting her suitcase with ease. "I assume you want these outside on the porch?"  
"Yeah, thank you very much."  
"Not a problem," he said with a grin. "Let me get that other one for you too." He reached out and took the other suitcase out of Aeka's hand, then went downstairs.  
Aeka watched him go, and then she returned to her room, grabbing another two suitcases. Fortunately, these were lighter than the ones she tried carrying out a minute ago, so she managed to get them to the porch without incident. Sasami followed closely behind with her own two suitcases, and set them down next to her sister's luggage. Russ came out the door a moment later and tossed his duffel bag into the pile. Aeka stared at it, and then at him.  
"Is that all you're bringing?"  
He looked at her with mock surprise. "What? You think I should bring my entire wardrobe for just a week?"  
"At least more than that!" she yelled, pointing at his luggage.  
"I don't NEED more than that. Remember, I can generate my clothes on a whim if I want."  
"You haven't generated anything except karate gi's! What else can you generate?"  
"I can generate karate gi's only. But that's what I like to wear. They're comfortable and I look good in them."  
Aeka threw up her hands in frustration and went back inside. Russ started chuckling to himself when the doorbell rang.  
"I'll get it," Russ said, making his way over to the front door.  
"Hi! We're here!" Mihoshi announced.  
"Yeah, we're here," Kiyone said, looking very tired. "Where should we put our luggage?"  
"What's wrong, Kiyone?"  
"We pulled a late night shift again. There was no way to get out of it." She let out a big yawn and stretched.  
"Oh, sorry to hear it. There will be plenty of room on my friend's ship to sleep, so you can catch a few winks when we leave." Russ spied their suitcases behind them. "I'll take care of your luggage. Everybody else is more or less done packing everything so go on inside and make yourselves comfortable for now."  
"Thanks a lot," she sighed, trudging into the house. Russ looked back at Mihoshi, who was energetic as usual. He closed the door behind them, holding all of their suitcases and duffel bags.  
"How come you're not tired like she is?"  
"I had fallen asleep during patrol last night. Kiyone never woke me back up."  
"I see. Well anyway, how do you guys like your new apartment? I never had the chance to ask you about it since you moved out on a whim last week."  
"It's nice! It's the same one we had before. The rent is real cheap since we can't afford…" she had a hand over her mouth again.  
"You always say one word too many!" Kiyone growled at her. Russ just smiled and shook his head, snickering lightly.  
"Well, at least you won't have to worry about finances on this trip. Aeka had said that we'd most likely stay in the Royal Palace, so room and board will be free. Anyway, where do you guys park the Yagami now? I haven't seen it in a while."  
"We leave it in orbit and transport aboard when we need to go out on an emergency," Kiyone explained. "Makes it nicer than that little patrol shuttle we used to have."  
"Yeah, sounds like it. Cool." Russ made his way into the living room followed by the two Galaxy Police Officers. "Hey guys, Kiyone and Mihoshi are here."  
Nobuyuki, Katsuhito, Washu, Ryoko, and Tenchi all turned and greeted them warmly. Russ took their luggage and added it to the mountain of suitcases and travel bags on the porch.  
"Why do women have so much luggage?" he mumbled to himself.  
  
Looking back inside the house, Russ decided the crowd was too big, so he made his way out to the lake, intending to burn the remaining time away. He had already taken care of everything that needed to be done. The homing beacon on his spacepod was active, and would deactivate an hour after they left. That was the most important thing he had to remember, or his friend would have had no idea where to pull into orbit at. All preparations were complete, and he felt a little tinge of excitement, happy to be leaving the place and to see Jurai for the first time.  
Lifting off the ground, he flew out to Ryu-oh's tree, and sat down on one of the roots that were above the water. Looking at his reflection, he smiled, remembering what Aeka had told him about this tree a couple days ago. It was really quite interesting. Apparently, before she crash-landed on Earth, this tree was actually a spaceship, or more accurately, the heart of the ship, sort of like a main computer that controls everything. She also explained that this tree was her own personal tree, which she had since she was born. Russ noticed that she was a little downcast, since she was remembering all the trips she had made with her ship.  
"What's wrong? You seem a little sad," he had told her, watching her expression after she told him all about her tree and the ship, and how she crashed into the earth, forever rooting it to the soil.  
"Oh, nothing," she said.  
"I'm sorry that your ship cannot fly anymore, Aeka. Do you sometimes wish that it could?"  
"Sometimes. A lot. Yes," she said, looking into his eyes. "I'd love for Ryu-Oh to fly once again, but that's impossible, but at least my tree survived the crash and regenerated itself."  
"Yeah, I guess so. But anyway, I had meant to ask you something. When is your birthday?"  
She looked at him in surprise. "Why?"  
"Just curious."  
"September 21, according to Earth calendar."  
"Ahhh, cool. Mine is October 6," he said, getting a huge idea for a killer birthday present. His facial expression hinted that he was thinking of something.  
"What are you doing?"  
He turned back toward her. "I just thought of a really neat birthday present for you."  
"Oh? What?"  
"Ahhh no. I'm not giving away any secrets," he snickered.  
"You're thinking about getting me a new ship, aren't you?"  
"No, nothing like that. Where would you fly to, anyway?"  
"Good point. I don't want to leave this place."  
"Even though I've only been here two weeks, I don't want to leave either. I love this planet and staying here with you guys," he said, looking back toward the house where Sasami was chasing Ryo-Ohki all over the place. "It's very calm and peaceful here."  
"Yes. That's why I like it here too."  
"Yeah. So, have you been enjoying your ability to fly?" he asked, changing the subject.  
"It's very interesting, but it gives me a feeling of freedom. I'm glad you showed me how to do that kind of thing."  
"Would you like to learn something new?"  
"Like what?" she asked, becoming interested.  
"I could show you how to shoot energy blasts like I do."  
"Thanks, but I can already do that."  
"Really? I've never seen you do it before. I just saw those little log things when you were about to fry Washu," he laughed.  
"It's really rare when I do that kind of thing. Strangely enough, both times that I had done it recently was against both Kagato's. When we were fighting on the Soja, Kagato had thrown Ryoko into a cement pillar, and then tried to run her through with his sword. Fortunately she dodged it, and I flung an energy ball into his face. Didn't work, though." She frowned. "There was the other time when Tenchi was fighting the imposter Yosho, who was also named Kagato. He was about to kill Tenchi, and I had flung an energy ball at him, which also didn't work."  
Russ snickered. "You got to put a lot of power behind an energy blast or it won't do squat, especially against someone who is stronger than you are. If that is the case, fling only real low powered energy balls just to distract him, then nail him from behind. I speak from experience."  
"You've had that kind of thing happen before?"  
"Oh yes, of course. I'm strong, but I'm by no means the strongest person in existence. Remember, Zorpheus is just as powerful as I am, and he is a very skilled fighter. We're so close to being equal it isn't funny." His complexion went to concern.  
"Can you tell me a little more about him, Russ?"  
"Sure. I had met him a long, long time ago. He had visited Earth with his parents, since his and my parents were good friends. The only difference between him and I is he is a Saiyan-Human hybrid. However, he loves to sprout that he's a Saiyan warrior, almost as if he's ashamed of his human qualities. He may not be a hundred percent Saiyan like me, but he's just as powerful. He likes wearing dark cloaks and odd clothes, too."  
"Nagi likes wearing cloaks as well. Wonder if they're related?" she giggled.  
"Heh, I have no idea. But anyway, his eyes are red. Not like mine, where I have black dots for pupils, but he has red irises and black pupils. One of the human traits that surfaced on him."  
"You're kidding! Nagi also has red eyes."  
Russ looked at her then scratched his head. "Freaky. But anyway, as far as the rest of him is concerned, he looks similar to Prince Vegeta. His hairstyle is similar, but more flat, and he's just a tad bit shorter than I am." He thought a moment. "Everybody says I look like Goku. Well, in a way, I guess I do. The hair is identical to his and I wear the same kind of gi he does, but I'm just a little taller than him, and my face is only slightly different from his. But I can see why people make that mistake."  
"Who was Goku?"  
"He was the Earth's greatest hero. He was the most powerful Saiyan in existence. He had no equal, and he was just the perfect example of a hero. He was amazing, from what I understand from record books. It's been over a thousand years since he lived. His kids carried on his legacy for a while, until the Saiyan traits began to fade due to breeding with other non-Saiyan types."  
"Interesting. Well, I'm going to go back inside and watch my soap with Ryoko. It's just about that time."  
Russ cringed. "Okay, have fun." Both of them stood up and flew over the lake, landing on the ground near the house. "I'm going to continue training. See you later."  
"Okay, don't train too hard."  
"I won't," he snickered, as she went inside and he began his enhanced gravity training at six hundred times normal gravity.  
  
Russ continued to sit at the tree, still caught up in his daydream, and he didn't see Aeka float over the water.  
"Russ? What are you doing out here?"  
"Oh, hi there," he said, snapping out of his trance and greeting her with a warm smile. "Is it time to go?"  
"Just about. It's quarter to noon, and it'll take Ryo-Ohki about five minutes to bring all our stuff onboard and get into orbit."  
"Alright. Well, let's get Ryo-Ohki prepped and at least get our stuff loaded. My friend should already be in orbit, actually. He's usually early. We can go right now, but he won't decloak his ship until noon, so we won't know where he's at."  
"What is this cloak you keep telling us about?"  
"Well, it hides his ship from sensors and sight. It's really neat, actually. He can sit right in front of you and you'd never know he was there, until he either opened fire or decloaked his ship, or you ran into it on accident. You didn't know anything about cloaking devices?" he asked, looking surprised. "I figured Jurai's military would have something similar, by the way you tell me about their ships and the like."  
"No, we don't have anything like that, nor have ever heard anything like it."  
Russ and Aeka lifted off into the air and landed near the porch. Ryo-Ohki was sitting right outside, patiently waiting for when she was supposed to transform.  
"It's a very complex piece of equipment. As far as we know, there are only a few other races out there that have this type of technology. He is a smooth bargainer, and he managed to purchase the technology and modify it to his needs."  
"Wow. Sounds neat," she said, pretending to be interested.  
"Well anyway, I'm sure you're not interested in techno babble. Ryo-Ohki! Are you ready?"  
She meowed an affirmative, as Russ picked her up off the porch. Everybody who was sitting in the living room noticed and they all stood up, making their way outside as Russ threw the cabbit into the air and watched her transform.  
"I still get a kick out of that," he laughed. "Okay! Transport all the luggage aboard, and then bring us up," he shouted up to her, who meowed in response. Bit by bit, the luggage vanished, rematerializing inside of the spaceship in her cargo hold.  
A few minutes later she finished, and then transported everyone onboard. Ryoko sat down in the pilot seat, while many other chairs appeared throughout the ship.  
"Okay, is everybody here? Let's see, Ryoko, Washu, Mihoshi, Kiyone, Katsuhito, Nobuyuki, Sasami, Aeka, Ryo-Ohki, Azaka, Kamadake, and myself. Okay, great. Did we lock up the house and everything?"  
"I did, so there's no need to worry!" Mihoshi said from her seat next to Kiyone.  
"Ryo-Ohki! Transport me back to the surface for a moment." Russ vanished and reappeared on the ground. He quickly darted to every door, checking to make certain they were locked. One door wasn't, so he quickly bolted it. Placing two fingers to his head, he teleported himself back onboard, rather than bug the cabbit.  
"Okay, everything is locked NOW," he said, grinning at Mihoshi, who was giggling and scratching the back of her head. "Ryoko, take us up and put us in geosynchronous orbit with Earth."  
"Why?"  
Russ looked at her like she had grown a third limb. "Just do it. My friend should be real close to that spot."  
"Well, okay. Let's go, Ryo-Ohki!" She meowed and shot up into the atmosphere, and a few moments later, they were at their designated height.  
"Wow, she can really move fast. Okay, it's a minute till, so let's wait and see where my friend is hiding."  
"He's not here."  
"Oh yes he is. Just wait and see."  
Everybody looked out the windows, but didn't see anything.  
Russ started snickering. "Five… four… three… two… one…" he said. Just as he got to one, a massive section of space near Ryo-Ohki began to bend and fold, almost as if reality was warping next to them. Everybody gasped and Ryo-Ohki meowed a warning, and prepared to open fire with her cannon.  
"Whoa, whoa! Take it easy!" he shouted. A few moments later, a huge, massive ship appeared where the spatial distortion occurred. "And there it is."  
"It's… HUGE!" Ryoko sputtered, clearly in awe, as she admired the gleaming white hull.  
"What kind of ship is that?" Washu asked, clearly impressed.  
"Well, I'll explain it to you once we get onboard. Ryo-Ohki, fly down under the ship and there will be a huge hangar bay underneath. He'll use tractor beams to pull us in."  
The cabbit meowed a shaky affirmative, but complied. They slowly moved under the massive hulk of the ship, which was bristling with weaponry. Washu pulled out her phantom computer, trying to run an analysis on the ship, but couldn't get a reading on it.  
"That's some weird armor on that thing. I can't analyze it."  
"I'm not surprised. But anyway, let's get onboard and I'll tell you all about it, and introduce you to my good friend who is the captain of this vessel, and who is also the owner and the man who wanted this thing built."  
"Okay," Washu said, looking the ship over from end to end. "It's sixteen hundred meters in length, and I can detect a huge power output from it, too."  
Everybody continued to stare at the starship as they were pulled into the hangar bay.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
*Note: the Detroit Theater Organ Society's organ can be seen here   
- http://theatreorgans.com/mi/dtos/  
  
**Note: Ryoko's Japanese VA, Ai Orikasa, also does Quatre from   
Gundam Wing (If you didn't know that already), so once you get   
to the point where Russ asks her to sing it, you'll understand why.  
  
Tenchi sat in his seat aboard Ryo-Ohki, transfixed on the   
massive starship just outside the window. He had only seen these   
vessels in science fiction films, and had never, in a hundred million   
years, expected to see one in real life. And now, this thing was   
sitting only a few hundred meters away, and it sent a wave of   
excitement through him, mixed with worry, since the people who   
had used these ships were evil. Admiring the arrow shaped hull of   
the ship, up to the bridge which had two golf-ball like globes on   
top, all the way down to the underside of the vessel where the   
hanger bay became visible, it was the most awesome sight he ever   
beheld, except when he saw Aeka's ship descend to Earth when   
she arrived to rescue Mihoshi. But, this thing was so much larger.  
Washu continued to type frantically at her keyboard,   
gathering as many readouts as she could through the cabbit's   
sensors, and everybody else more or less just stared at the craft,   
regarding its massive bulk and its very geometric shape. Russ   
stood in the middle of Ryo-Ohki, with an amused smirk creasing   
his lips.  
"Is that thing for real?" asked Tenchi from his seat,   
glancing over to Russ.  
He raised an eyebrow and his smile grew. "Sure is. I bet   
you know what kind of ship this is, don't you?"  
"Yes. I've seen them in Starwars before. What are they   
called again? It's been a long time since I've seen those movies."   
He scratched his head a moment when he felt Ryo-Ohki shudder   
slightly. The cabbit meowed a frantic warning that something had   
grabbed her and was pulling her in.  
"Don't worry," Russ assured her. "Those are just the   
tractor beams I was telling you about. He'll guide us into the bay,   
rather than have us try to navigate our way inside. Just let him do   
the work." He turned back toward Tenchi. "You were saying?" he   
asked, resuming his grin.  
"Yes. I remember now. Isn't that thing an Imperial Star   
Destroyer out of Starwars?" Everybody turned to look at him,   
wondering what he was talking about, except for Russ, who was   
beaming with pride.  
"Bingo! We have a winner," he said, walking over and   
patting Tenchi on the back. "Yes, this is an Imperial Star   
Destroyer. The 'Gray Wolf' is its name. Back when I lived here   
on Earth, my parents and the captain were good friends, and so was   
I. We used to watch a lot of movies together, among other things.   
One of the movies we saw was Starwars, somewhere around 1990.   
He saw those ships and decided he HAD to have one. So he took a   
large sum of his money and paid an army of workers to construct   
one. It's authentic, right down to its turbolasers. Armor, shields,   
the propulsion system, and the power system are all identical to the   
movie's counterparts. It took nearly ten years to construct this   
working prototype."  
"Incredible. But why can it cloak? I don't remember   
these things being able to do that in the movies," he inquired.  
"No, but they eventually get the technology to do that in   
the novels. Except he improved on the cloak a little, which allows   
him to see outside his cloaking shield. In the novels, the shield   
blocked everything. Light, sound, radio. Nothing could penetrate   
the shield. Nothing got in, nothing got out. So, he took my advice   
and now uses a variety of tiny little camera sensor-like things that   
poke themselves out just beyond the shield perimeter, which   
allows him to gather data outside the cloaking field. They are   
physically attached to the ship, since radio waves cannot penetrate   
the cloak. But anyway, he can see where everything is. The   
sensors themselves are so small that they just appear as space dust.   
He can see us, but we can't see him, until he decides to show   
himself. It's really a nifty piece of work."  
Washu was eagerly listening to all the techno babble Russ   
was laying on Tenchi, taking notes where appropriate. "Do you   
think he'll let me study some of this stuff?" she asked.  
Russ turned toward her. "That's up to him, but frankly, I   
don't think he will. This ship is VERY advanced. I wouldn't   
doubt that it is the most advanced vessel in existence right now.   
It's very powerful, and therefore, the technology is closely   
guarded."  
Washu nodded. "Yeah, I can understand that. Maybe   
he'd be willing to trade secrets or technology with me. I'm sure I   
could think of something to improve his ship with," she replied, as   
she resumed typing on her computer.  
Russ shrugged his shoulders in response. "Maybe. He   
really doesn't need anything new, but there still are some rough   
spots that he's still struggling to deal with on the ship. But   
anyway, the thing is self-sustaining, meaning it can exist in space   
indefinitely, without ever needing a re-supply. It's one of the most   
fantastic pieces of work he's ever accomplished. He's very proud   
of it. And I love it too, because I'm also a Starwars nut," Russ   
said, snickering.  
Ryo-Ohki was now being pulled up into the hangar, and   
the interior of the ship was now visible. Red warning lights   
flashed in the waiting hangar bay, where Ryo-Ohki was to be   
parked. Several men were running around, checking to make sure   
everything was proceeding normally, and a few other people were   
waving small lights around, guiding the tractor beam controllers.   
Another shudder rumbled the cabbit as all of the tractor beams   
except one shut down. The last active one slowly pulled her into   
the bay, and she passed through a forcefield, which crackled with   
energy as she went through, letting her in and keeping the air   
inside the bay. A moment later, Ryo-Ohki shuddered one last time   
as she was gently set down on the floor, and the beam disengaged   
from it. Several smaller support tractor beams engaged   
themselves, intending to keep the ship in an upright position. The   
red warning lights and the blaring siren stopped a moment later.   
They had arrived safely onboard the most advanced starship ever   
conceived in this galaxy.  
"We're heeeeerrrreeee," Russ announced, sounding like   
the little girl from poltergeist. He looked out the window and   
noticed a contingent of guards standing outside the ship, lined up   
perfectly.  
"At least they're not dressed in stormtrooper outfits,"   
Tenchi said, sighing in relief.  
Russ laughed in response. "No stormtroopers here. Most   
everybody on this ship is very friendly and helpful, in sharp   
contrast to the imperial guard that used to run these ships in the   
movies. I think you'll like it." He moved toward the middle of   
Ryo-Ohki again. "Well, shall we disembark? I'd hate to keep   
them waiting."  
A rustle of chairs and fabric greeted his ears as everybody   
who wasn't sitting stood up and moved next to Russ. A moment   
later, they were teleported outside of the cabbit-ship, onto the steel   
deck of the hanger bay. Several of the guards raised their   
eyebrows in suspicion, regarding the new arrivals. Living a life   
onboard the star destroyer was fulfilling, but didn't have much   
outside communication. They mostly just stayed in orbit around   
the captain's home world, always re-building and fixing the many   
existing bugs throughout the ship.  
Ryo-Ohki meowed a few times, and then transformed   
herself back into a little furry cabbit. She bounded up on top of   
Sasami's head, which was her favorite place to be, but causing all   
the guards to facefault when they saw that. Everybody in the   
group perspired lightly, but recovered shortly thereafter. The   
tractor beams that were supporting her automatically tried to   
require the target, but it was gone, and a warning klaxon sounded.   
One of the operators nearby disengaged the alarm, and it fell silent.   
A mountain of luggage now sat where the spaceship did a moment   
earlier.  
The captain of the ship entered the hangar bay, causing all   
of the men to stand at attention. He was scowling, and didn't look   
at all happy. His uniform was white, which resembled the imperial   
guard uniforms out of Starwars, but had some minor alterations,   
mainly to allow for his muscular frame. Slowly making his way   
over to the new arrivals, his footsteps echoing throughout the bay   
in a steady rhythm, his gaze fixated on one spiky haired individual   
standing at the front of the group. He stopped about a foot away   
from him, staring directly into his eyes, not flinching or showing   
any emotion. Everyone in the group looked on him with concern   
and worry, as they all began to fidget with various articles of   
clothing, or conform to their own little, nervous habits.  
Russ returned the cold, hard stare, gazing down into the   
captain's hazel eyes, also not showing any emotion. Suddenly, the   
captain made a move like he was going to slug him in the face, and   
then grabbed him in a crushing hug, laughing heartily. A   
collective sigh of relief emanated from the group.  
"Russ! How's it going, buddy? Long time, no see!" he   
yelled, grinning from ear to ear and crushing Russ in another bear   
hug.  
"Hey, Tom! Darn right, long time no see. We have to get   
together more often!"  
"No kidding!"  
"Well, how are things? The ship looks to be in great   
shape! I guess nobody wants to challenge a warship out of   
Starwars, eh?" Russ started laughing.  
"Everything has been running smoothly, more or less," he   
said, backing off a bit, just now noticing his contingent of   
passengers. "Well, you bum, aren't you going to introduce me to   
your friends?"  
"Duh," he taunted, turning toward his entourage.   
"Everyone, this is Captain Thomas Franklin, the owner and captain   
of this vessel." Everybody gave a small bow or nod in his   
direction. "Now," he said, moving over to Tenchi. "This is Tenchi   
Masaki."  
"How do you do, sir," Tenchi said while extending his   
hand, which Tom grabbed and shook, nearly crushing it.  
"I'm doing great. Nice to meet you," he answered,   
looking into his brown eyes and judging his character by his   
appearance. He smiled and nodded his head when he was   
satisfied.  
"Next," Russ said, moving over to the space pirate. "This   
is Ryoko, Tenchi's girlfriend."  
She smiled at Tom, extending her hand. "Hello," she   
said, unsure of what to think of all of this.  
Tom, on the other hand, drank in her beauty, trying to   
swallow the large amount of saliva that was pooling in his mouth.   
"Daaaaaamn," he muttered under his breath. Regaining his   
composure, he gently took her hand in his and shook it. "It's a   
pleasure to make your acquaintance." He looked back at Tenchi,   
who had an amused smirk on his face. "You're sure lucky to have   
a beautiful woman like her as your girlfriend. Whew."  
"Thanks," he answered, putting his arm around her, as if   
to emphasize that she was his, and nobody else's.  
Russ nudged Tom in the side. "Don't even think about it.   
She's incredibly strong. You make a move on her and she'll kick   
your butt all over this Star Destroyer. Get me?"  
Tom nodded in resignation, and then looked at the next   
lady in line. "And who's this pretty young lady?"  
"This is Princess Aeka, of Jurai," Russ responded,   
introducing her.  
Tom's eyes bulged a moment, and then offered his hand.   
"It's my honor to have you aboard my ship, Princess."  
Aeka glared at Russ for a moment, angry that he used her   
title as Princess, but her gaze softened and she placed her hand in   
Tom's, which he gently shook. "Thank you. You do me too much   
credit."  
He shook his head. "Nonsense. Princesses deserve to be   
treated as royalty."  
She frowned. "I haven't been home in over a year, and I   
could care less about my title. Frankly, I like living as a normal   
person, rather than have the burden of being a Princess."  
"I see. Well anyway, here, you'll be treated very well.   
Most everybody is very friendly and will do their best to make   
your stay and everybody else's stay," he said, casually gesturing to   
the others, "a pleasurable one."  
"Thank you very much. I appreciate it."  
Russ grumbled something under his breath and bumped   
Tom. "Enough, you old smoothie. Next to Aeka, is the pretty   
Princess Sasami, Aeka's younger sister," he said, gesturing to the   
little blue haired girl.  
"Hi! Nice to meet you," she said, giving a little bow.  
"Well! Aren't you so cute and polite!" he grinned, giving   
his own little bow. "There are a few other children onboard.   
Maybe later I can show you to the game room and you can have   
some fun!"  
Her eyes widened in excitement. "Oh wow, you mean it?   
You have a game room on the ship?"  
Tom's grin grew to enormous proportions. "Yeah, you   
bet. We have a huge arcade here to keep the crew occupied, and   
we also have something similar to Startrek's holodeck."  
"Cool!" she beamed, smiling in her utterly overwhelming   
cuteness.  
Tom chuckled lightly, then turned toward Russ. "Remind   
me later that I have something to give you, alright? You know   
how bad my memory is so don't forget."  
Russ raised an eyebrow in curiosity. "Something to give   
me, eh? Well, I'll try to remember, but as YOU know, my   
memory is about as bad as yours." He chuckled. "Well anyway,   
the little animal on top of Sasami's head is Ryo-Ohki, their   
spaceship."  
Tom looked at Russ, then back behind the group, and   
noticed the ship they arrived in was nowhere in sight. Looking   
back at the cabbit, a bead of perspiration formed on his head. "So,   
is this that cute little spaceship you told me about?"  
"Sure is. Say hi, Ryo-Ohki."  
In response, the cabbit meowed a couple of times,   
bobbing her tail back and forth. Tom reached over and petted her   
head, causing her to start purring lightly and meow contented little   
noises. He laughed in response. "Yeah, she definitely is cute.   
Amazing that she can transform into a spaceship. I've never seen   
anything like her before."  
"Yeah, well, you don't get out much," he said, slapping   
Tom on the back. "You've spent so many years building this ship   
of yours that you've more or less become a hermit."  
"I am not a hermit! I was just very excited about getting   
this thing put together and finished. And I still haven't worked all   
the bugs out of this contraption."  
"I'm sure you will eventually. Anyway, next, introducing   
the resident galaxy police officers, Kiyone and Mihoshi."  
Kiyone stepped forward and offered her hand. "Hello.   
My name is Kiyone, and this is my partner, Mihoshi," she said,   
gesturing to the blonde woman standing next to her.  
Tom grasped her hand and shook it heartily. Trying to   
keep his hormones under control from staring at both beautiful   
ladies, he took in a deep breath and relaxed a bit. "It's a pleasure   
to meet you two lovely ladies."  
Mihoshi giggled. "Oh my, so flattering! Thank you."   
She offered her hand as well, which Tom grasped a little more   
gently than Kiyone's, and shook it.  
"You're welcome."  
Russ shook his head and allowed an annoyed smirk to   
creep onto his expression. "MOVING ON," he growled, annoyed.   
"This is Little Washu, the resident scientific genius of the house."  
"Ahem."  
Russ looked at her, as her green eyes stared back at him, a   
little grin on her lips. Realization crashed through his head a   
moment later. "Uh, let me rephrase that. This is Little Washu, the   
Greatest Scientific Genius in the Universe!"  
Washu's smile increased and she nodded her head in   
approval. She then offered her hand to Tom. "Pleased to meet   
you."  
The captain looked back at Russ, who shrugged his   
shoulders, grinning. "Nice to meet you, Little Washu," he said,   
looking back to the red-haired scientist and taking her hand,   
shaking it casually.  
"And this is Azaka and Kamidake, Aeka's guardians," he   
announced, gesturing to the two logs.  
"How do you do, sir," Azaka said, his eye flashing blue as   
he spoke.  
"We're pleased to make your acquaintance," Kamidake   
added, his red eye blinking with his voice.  
Tom looked at both of them in interest, and then gave a   
bow to both of them. "It's a pleasure."  
"This is Katsuhito," Russ said, gesturing to the white-  
robed, wizened man.  
Tom extended his hand toward him, which was accepted   
graciously. "Welcome aboard."  
"Thank you," he replied, nodding his head.  
"And lastly, this is Tenchi's father, Nobuyuki," Russ said,   
introducing the last of his group.  
"Hi," he said, smiling warmly and extending his hand.   
Tom accepted it quickly and shook it. "It's nice to have   
you and your son come aboard."  
"I appreciate you taking the trouble to take us to Jurai.   
We're in debited to you."  
Tom put his hand up in front of Nobuyuki's face.   
"Nonsense. You guys don't owe me anything. I too have wanted   
to go to Jurai, but I never had a reason to. And it isn't often that I   
take my ship away from my home planet. So don't worry. Just   
enjoy yourself." He smiled and nodded his head.  
"Thank you very much."  
"Not a problem." Tom walked back toward the middle of   
the group and stood next to Russ. "Any friend of Russ' is a friend   
of mine. Feel free to go anywhere you want onboard this ship,   
except where the restricted areas are marked."  
A chorus of "Thank you," and other various forms of   
gratitude were said from the group.  
Tom smiled. "Well, for our first stop on our tour, let's go   
to the bridge and get ourselves underway, shall we?" he asked,   
gesturing for everybody to follow.  
"Wait, what about our luggage?" Aeka said, looking   
mildly distressed.  
"Don't worry about that. I'll have my men take your   
luggage to Russ' quarters. Your rooms will be right next to his,   
and you can sort your baggage later."  
"Ahhh, I see you saved my favorite room for me. Thanks   
a lot."  
"No problem! I always knew you'd come back onboard a   
few times in the future, so I decided to keep your room ready for   
you. I was using it for storage until you called me up a week and a   
half ago. But all of that stuff is gone, and your room is just as you   
left it."  
"Awesome. Thanks a bundle."  
Tom began to walk toward the hangar doors, and   
everybody turned to follow in a single file line. The huge, meter   
thick, solid steel door slid back into the wall, and everybody exited   
the hangar bay into a large corridor, which was lined with   
computer readouts and bustling with alien activity. Humanoids of   
all kinds were making their way around, carrying various pieces of   
equipment, and others were at the computer consoles. Several of   
the aliens weren't even humanoid at all. One resembled a wild   
boar, but was nearly four feet high. It carried a heavy steel pipe in   
its jaw, and it grunted to Tom as it walked past. He nodded in its   
direction, and then continued on his way to the lift and the end of   
the hall. The group couldn't help but admire the activity inside the   
corridor, but even more so the aliens that were running the ship.   
Most of them turned around, giving their own version of a smile   
and a friendly hello, which everybody returned warmly.  
Tenchi looked all around him, almost feeling like he was   
in a dream world. The realization that he was currently walking   
through an alien society and technology was very overwhelming.   
Sure, he had been living with alien girls, but they were so close to   
being human that it was easy to forget their origins. Aeka, Sasami,   
Ryoko, Kiyone, Mihoshi, and Washu were all different in their   
own way, and it was easy to get attached to them, simply by looks.   
They didn't LOOK alien, except for the interesting hairstyles and   
eyes.  
A blue skinned individual walked by and nodded his head   
toward Tenchi, a smile on his face. Tenchi returned it happily,   
trying to keep from staring at him. Ryoko, who was walking   
behind him, giggled lightly as she watched Tenchi's expression   
continually change from awe to wonder and back again. However,   
she too had never seen most of these aliens. She had heard about   
some of them during her time as a space pirate, but now to actually   
see them was amazing. Now that she thought about it, she really   
never fought with very many alien cultures that weren't   
humanoids. So few, in fact, that she could count them on one   
hand. But there were many more than that wandering these   
hallways, and all of them seemed to be very happy, as they toiled   
away at their jobs. She wondered what they got paid.  
Washu, even though very hard to impress, couldn't help   
but marvel at the interior design of this ship. Most of the other   
vessels she had been aboard were near computer-less. Jurai ships   
didn't have any computers at all, and relied only on the Royal Tree   
for information and ship functions. Galaxy Police ships didn't   
have computers anywhere except on the bridge, where the   
functions were needed most. However, this ship was lined with   
computer consoles all along the walls, and in various other areas.  
Each computer had near full functionality that could   
control nearly everything throughout the ship. They could alter   
anything from the temperature to the tractor beam emitters outside   
the hanger bay. Only thing this ship was lacking in were   
transporters. But, that could be easily remedied, as Washu thought   
that would be a good trade for some of his technology. Of course,   
if he refused, she could always either steal it or invent her own   
version of whatever interested her, but make it better. It all   
depended on the complexity of the items she would become   
attracted to.  
Kiyone and Mihoshi followed everybody else, watching   
the activity around them. It was so much like Galaxy Police   
Headquarters with all the people walking through the corridor. It   
made her feel right at home, until Mihoshi stopped at a computer   
console and started pressing buttons. Fortunately, nothing   
apparently happened, and she eventually moved on, being dragged   
by the arm courtesy of Kiyone.  
Everybody filed onboard the lift and the doors closed   
behind him or her. It was surprisingly large and roomy, and was   
very quiet.  
  
A few short moments later, the lift doors re-opened onto   
the Star Destroyer's bridge. Consoles were lined up along most of   
the walls, and there must've been at least three-dozen people   
seated in various places around the room. The front wall was   
nothing but a huge window, which provided a grand view of the   
front hull of the starship and a huge section of space. Despite   
everything being steel and gray, the bridge was surprisingly   
comfortable. The chairs were plush and soft, and there were many   
other items throughout the bridge, which resembled a meeting hall   
rather than a warship's command structure. Everybody stood at   
attention when Tom made his entry.  
"Captain on the bridge!" a young girl announced as Tom   
and his group exited the lift.  
"As you were," he responded, as everybody once again   
took their respective seats and resumed their duties. Nobody   
seemed to be nervous or intimidated by Tom's presence or his   
group of visitors.  
"As you can tell," Tom began, gesturing to the area   
around him. "This is the command structure, or the bridge of my   
ship. This is where I spend most of my time, unless someone   
requires my assistance with something. Doesn't happen too often   
though."  
"I still love this. Fortunately you didn't build a Victory   
Star Destroyer or the bridge would be really cramped. At least,   
that's what I hear," Russ mentioned as he scanned the crew.  
Tom scratched the back of his head and put on an out of   
the ordinary smirk. Russ watched him in interest, and then   
realized something.  
"I know that look," he warned. "What are you up to   
now?"  
Tom's only response was an increase in the size of his   
grin.  
"Don't tell me you're building one of those Star   
Destroyers."  
"Well, no. Not exactly."  
Russ' eyes widened a little. "Okay, so now I know you're   
building something else. What is it?"  
"You'd shit a brick of I showed you," he chuckled,   
watching Russ' expression grow more and more astonished.  
"Hey, watch the language," Russ hissed. "There are   
children present." He jerked his head over to Sasami, who was   
giggling quietly. "You have to show me what you're building or   
I'll go insane. I hate it when you tease me like this."  
"I know. That's why I love doing it." He walked over to   
the captain's chair and sat down, withdrawing a pad from one of   
the small shelves that were attached to the arms. He handed it over   
to Russ and sat back, waiting.  
Russ accepted the pad and began thumbing through it, as   
everybody else looked on in curiosity. Suddenly, his eyes looked   
like they were going to bulge right out of his head as he nearly   
dropped the pad, his legs wobbling and his face a mask of horror   
and amazement. His gaze shot over to Tom, who had the biggest,   
goofy grin he could muster on his face. His eyebrows moved up   
and down as he steepled his fingers together.  
"YOU'RE INSANE!!" Russ shouted, taking a look at the   
pad again and causing almost the whole bridge crew to start   
chuckling or stare at him in amusement. "You don't even have   
this ship running at a hundred percent yet! What are you going to   
do with a ship that's ELEVEN TIMES BIGGER than this one?!"   
The entire group except for Katsuhito facefaulted to the floor, and   
recovered a moment later.  
"I have my ways. This ship is a little small for the   
amount of people and technicians I have onboard, so they all   
cooperated with me and agreed to build a second ship. And yes,   
that is an Executor class Super Star Destroyer. It's already being   
built. In fact, construction has been taking place over the last two   
years. You and your group are the only outsiders that know about   
it presently. Please keep it that way. It's predicted to take only   
five years to finish." Tom paused a moment to let that sink in.   
"Ever since the completion of this ship, I've had a landslide of   
requests from people to come live onboard because they've heard   
from their families how very enjoyable it is here. No money, no   
funds, no worries. You work when you want, and we have   
unlimited supplies. It's almost paradise, despite this vessel being a   
warship."  
Ryoko nearly had a heart attack and died when she heard   
there was no money onboard, and Aeka had a similar reaction.   
Tenchi and the rest of the gang took it in stride, accepting it easily.  
Russ shook his head. "I still say you're insane, but it's   
your money."  
"I didn't spend a dime on this new vessel."  
Now it was Russ' turn to facefault. "You're joking."  
"Nope. This new supership's construction is taking place   
via the combined effort of people who want to live in peace and   
travel the stars. Materials and labor are all being donated to the   
completion of this thing. If all goes well, there may eventually be   
a fleet of Starwars style starships drifting the cosmos."  
"Amazing. I always said you were a smooth talker," Russ   
chuckled. "Any other ships on the assembly line?"  
"As a matter of fact, yes. Work is proceeding on some   
smaller escort ships, like the Nebulon B Frigate, Corellian   
Corvette, and a few other vessels. I want to do an interdictor   
cruiser, but we haven't figured out how to generate the gravity well   
yet. But we really don't need a ship like that for now. And yes,   
we're also doing a Victory Star Destroyer, despite what I said   
earlier."  
"Interesting."  
"Yeah." Tom cleared his throat. "Shall we get going   
then? It should take us about twelve hours to get to Jurai from   
here."  
"Yes! To Jurai," everybody shouted, excitedly.  
"Alright then! Sakuya?"  
A pale, green-eyed girl turned from her position at the   
helm. "Yes sir?"  
"Take us out of the system and set a course for Jurai."  
"Aye, captain." She glanced at the group for a moment   
and her gaze landed on Tenchi. She hesitated, staring at him a few   
moments, and then turned back toward the console, hitting a few   
buttons.  
A light rumble vibrated the deck and resonated in   
everybody's ears as the ship pulled out of orbit from planet Earth   
and began to quickly make its way out of the Solar System. Upon   
reaching Pluto, another smaller vessel became visible. It quickly   
made it's way over to the starship and pulled up alongside it.  
"Ahhh, our temporary replacements have arrived,"   
Kiyone said, looking at a different version of a Yagami class patrol   
ship. "It's about time, too. Oh well, at least they only have to be   
here a week or so."  
Tom turned toward her. "So that's a GP cruiser?   
Interesting."  
A furry individual across from the helm spoke up.   
"Excuse me, Captain, but that other ship is hailing us."  
"Okay, put them through."  
"Yes sir." He hit a few buttons on the con and an image   
of a red haired woman popped up, just in front of the window.  
"This is the Galaxy Police ship Oragami. Identify…" She   
stopped herself as her eyes widened. "Kiyone?!"  
"Mitzuki? What are you doing here?" Kiyone asked,   
hiding her amusement.  
"I'm here to act as your replacement while you're away.   
What are you doing onboard THAT ship? I thought you'd take   
Ryo-Ohki?"  
"No. Ryo-Ohki would take a week to get there. This ship   
is much faster."  
"I see."  
"So, why are you our replacement? What happened at   
Headquarters?" Kiyone asked, trying to hide a smirk, but not doing   
very well.  
Mitzuki growled something incoherent under her breath.   
"I've been demoted to patrol duty again. It's just my luck that I   
landed this temporary one out in the middle of nowhere."  
"Well, don't worry. You'll have a lot of time to kick back   
and relax," she stated, no longer hiding her amusement,   
remembering those same exact words that Mitzuki spoke to her   
when she had returned to GP headquarters and insulted her   
position.  
Mitzuki ground her teeth.  
"Well, we must be going. Take it easy, Mitzuki!"  
Her expression went livid as she cut the comm. channel.   
Kiyone exploded laughing in response to her temper.  
"That's not very nice to tease her like that, Kiyone,"   
Mihoshi said, looking at her partner's glee.  
"I know, but it was worth it. I finally got a little payback   
for all those little insults of hers."  
Tom shook his head as the two girls conversed back and   
forth. "Sakuya, are we set to go to hyperspace yet?"  
"Just about, sir. The computer is plotting the final   
trajectory now. Never mind, it just finished. Ready to initiate   
hyperspace on your mark."  
"Go ahead. Let's make tracks," he said, sitting back in   
his chair.  
Sakuya hit the button to engage the hyperdrive, but a loud   
whining sound echoed throughout the ship, winding down to   
almost nothing, when the ship shuddered violently as it sat in   
place, like an immovable boulder.  
Tom furrowed his eyebrows together as Russ looked over   
at him, his expression mixed with amusement and annoyance.   
Tom began grinding his teeth, infuriated that this just had to   
happen with everybody watching.  
"This is NOT the Millennium Falcon!" Russ said, loudly,   
and drawing a chuckle from Tenchi. "What went wrong?"  
"Dammit! Something happened with the hyperdrive!   
They told me they had this problem licked! Open a comm.   
channel to the engine room!"  
"Yes sir."  
An infuriated roar of a wookie blared through the   
intercom, causing Tenchi and Russ to collapse to the floor and   
everyone else to break out in sweat drops. The sound of a man in   
the background could be heard shouting orders to the personnel   
and the wookie.  
"Hand me the hydrospanner!"  
The wookie roared a response as it apparently tossed him   
the said part.  
"No! This is a thetaspanner! Give me the hydrospanner!"  
The sound of a hundred parts crashed through the   
intercom system.  
"OWWWWW! You bonehead!"  
Another roar from the wookie intoned that the guy should   
know better. A moment later the chief engineer got on the   
intercom.  
"I'm sorry, sir. The hyperdrive motivator is shot. It'll   
take us about two hours to repair or replace the thing. We're   
working as quickly as we can."  
Tom groaned loudly. "How did that happen? We had   
that thing working smoothly for an entire year!"  
"I know sir, but some weird commands were entered on a   
console near the hanger bay. Apparently it caused an overload   
when we went to initiate the hyperdrive."  
Mihoshi put on her guilty look as Kiyone stared at her in   
barely controlled fury. "THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT,   
MIHOSHI!" she screamed, grabbing her shirt and violently   
shaking her back and forth, ready to kill her partner.  
"I'm sorry! I thought it was a computer game or   
something," she whined.  
"Can't you keep your hands off of ANYTHING!? You   
even blew up Yagami's engines more than once when Washu was   
trying to fix them! Now you blew up this thing's engine!"  
"I'm sorry," she said again, starting to cry.  
Kiyone ground her teeth, but allowed some of her anger   
to subside. "I'm sorry, Tom, for my partner's actions. If you   
want, we'll go to the engine room and try to help fix it."  
Tom looked on both of them in mild amusement, allowing   
his frustration to dissolve into nothing. "Don't worry about it.   
We'll have it fixed in two hours. I'll just have all the computer   
consoles ignore any commands given by her, so something like   
this won't happen again."  
"Thank you, sir, for being so forgiving," Kiyone said,   
giving a small bow in appreciation.  
Tom looked at Kiyone's partner, who resembled a small   
child who was in trouble. "Come here, Mihoshi."  
"Yes sir," she answered quietly, as she slowly made her   
way over and stood in front of Tom.  
"Okay. Computer, ignore all commands given by   
Mihoshi on all computer consoles."  
"Affirmative," it answered, in Russ' voice.  
Russ arched an eyebrow and grinned. "Since when did   
you do that?"  
Tom smiled. "I like your voice for the computer. But I   
can change it to anything I please, if it bothers you." He turned   
back toward Mihoshi. "It's all done. You can go stand with your   
partner again."  
"It doesn't bother me at all," Russ replied, as Mihoshi   
resumed her position next to Kiyone. "But why pick my voice? I   
thought you'd use Startrek's computer voice if anything."  
"Nah, that one was too annoying. Well anyway," he   
muttered, glancing around the bridge. "Sakuya, when the   
hyperdrive gets repaired, call me back up here."  
"Yes sir," she said, turning toward him, but locking her   
gaze on Tenchi again.  
Tom turned toward the group. "When we enter   
hyperspace, it's really neat to see. I'll bring you guys back up here   
once we're ready to go."  
"Alright, sounds good," Tenchi responded. "Can you   
show us to our quarters so we can get our stuff put away?"  
"Of course! Russ? Would you do the honors?"  
"No problem. I assume you want to oversee the repairs to   
the engines?"  
"Yeah. I have to make sure that man didn't get killed by   
the wookie," he chuckled.   
"Okay, then I'll see you in a little bit." Russ turned   
toward everyone. "Okay, follow me!" He moved back over to the   
lift and everybody filed onto it. The doors slid shut and they were   
whisked away to the living quarters.  
Tom watched them leave, and then sat back in his seat,   
rubbing his head in his hands. He opened an eye and noticed   
Sakuya was still staring at the lift.  
"What's wrong with you?" he asked, concerned.  
Suddenly realizing she wasn't paying attention to her job,   
she blushed slightly. "I'm sorry sir. I just think Tenchi is cute."  
"Don't even think about it. The blue haired woman is his   
girlfriend, and I don't think she'd take kindly to any interference,"   
he said, causing her happy mood to dissolve. "I'm sorry, but I'm   
only telling you this for your own good. From what Russ told me,   
she could kick MY butt all over this ship."  
"I understand, sir. I'm sorry for neglecting my duties."  
He waved a hand. "Think nothing of it. I must go to the   
engine room now and see what's going on. Call me if something   
else blows up or whatever."  
"Aye, sir," she said, feeling a little better and resuming   
her data analysis on the computer console.  
  
Russ and his party entered the area where their living   
quarters were located. Leading them into the hallway, and then to   
his room, he keyed the command to open the door and it slid into   
the wall, revealing a very large suite, complete with a king size   
bed, a hot tub, and many other high-class amenities. In the middle   
of his room, a mountain of luggage was piled neatly, awaiting its   
owners.  
Entering his quarters, Russ gestured for everybody to   
follow. Once they entered, he closed the door behind them and   
then turned toward the group. "Okay, so, how are we going to   
handle the sleeping arrangements if you guys want to rest a while   
before we arrive at Jurai? I know Ryoko and Tenchi want to be   
together, Aeka and Sasami would probably want to be together,   
along with Azaka and Kamidake, Kiyone and Mihoshi will be   
together, but what about the rest of you?"  
"Nobuyuki and I will take a room, if that's okay,"   
Katsuhito informed Russ.  
"Aw, but dad, I wanted to join Ryoko and Tenchi in their   
room."  
"DAAAAD!!" Tenchi growled, angrily.  
"What?"  
"Come on! Give me a break!" he argued, turning red.   
Ryoko giggled lightly, taking it in good humor. Aeka couldn't   
help but giggle as well. Russ stood there with his forehead   
beading with sweat.  
"Nobuyuki and I will take our own room. Got it?"   
Katsuhito announced again, glaring at his son in law.  
He sighed in resignation. "I guess so."  
"I'll just have my own room. I have some work I need to   
get done before we get to Jurai," Washu informed Russ.  
"Okay, no problem."  
"Thanks."  
"Well, since that is settled, grab your luggage and just   
pick a room along the hallway on this side." He thought a   
moment, and then counted the number of groups again. "Oh crud.   
He didn't give us enough rooms. We're one short. Well, there are   
a couple of options. I can buzz Tom and have him set us up with   
another room, or if one of you guys don't mind, you can share my   
room with me." He looked at the group who glanced at each other.   
"It's up to you guys what you want to do."  
Aeka looked at Sasami, then back at Russ. "We'd be   
willing to share a room with you, if you'll have us, Russ."  
His gaze went from mild surprise, to a warm smile. He   
nodded in agreement. "Sure. I can set you guys up here in the   
living room."  
"Great," she answered, smiling at Sasami. Everybody   
else looked at each other and exchanged a knowing glance, smiling   
slightly.  
"Okay, that's settled then. Grab your bags and take them   
to your rooms. Let's get rid of this pile of luggage!"  
Everybody complied and picked up his or her bags, then   
preceded to occupy their temporary quarters. They weren't as   
extravagant as Russ' were, but they were nice and comfortable,   
especially only for a twelve hour trip. Futons were laid out, beds   
were made, and everybody got familiar with the available items in   
their rooms, including the food replicators.  
  
Making sure everybody was settled into his or her new   
quarters, and demonstrating the replicator's use, Russ returned to   
his own quarters, where Aeka and Sasami both began to lay out   
futons in the living room. However, he had other ideas.  
"No need for that. You two can take the bed. I'll either   
sleep on the couch or something."  
"That isn't necessary. You got us this transportation to   
get us to Jurai very quickly, and I simply won't hear of you not   
getting to sleep in your own bed."  
Russ growled to himself. "And the Princess of Jurai   
should sleep like a princess, instead of like a big, dumb barbarian   
like myself," he said, snickering.  
She blushed slightly. "I'm sorry about calling you that. It   
was rude of me."  
He shook his head and waved it off. "I was insulting you   
too, Aeka. Don't worry about it, and I'm sorry too."  
She smiled and nodded her head. "Apology accepted."  
Sasami looked at the two of them when her stomach   
croaked lightly. "Oh no! I never made or ate any lunch! What are   
we going to do about food?"  
"That's no problem here, Sasami. Watch this," Russ said,   
making his way over to a hole in the wall, surrounded by   
pushbuttons. "What would you like to eat?"  
She thought a moment, and decided on something simple.   
"I want just plain old pickles and miso soup."  
"Anything to drink?"  
"Tea, I guess."  
"Okay." He hit a few buttons on the wall, and then spoke.   
"Pickles, miso soup, and tea."  
The air inside the hole shimmered for a few moments,   
then two bowls appeared, one with pickled rice and the other filled   
with a random flavor of miso soup. A cup of tea sat next to those   
two items, and a pair of chopsticks laid across the rice bowl.   
Everything sat on a large, plastic tray, complete with a paper   
napkin.  
Russ carefully lifted the meal and brought it over to   
Sasami, smiling with pride. "Enjoy your lunch!"  
She gasped in surprise. "Wow! That was so cool! How   
did it do that?" she asked, excitedly.  
"Uhhh, frankly, it would be quite difficult to explain.   
Washu would probably be the only one to understand it."  
"Oh," she answered, taking a seat at the table near the   
middle of the room. She dug in to her rice and ate a few bites, then   
washed it down with some of the soup. "Mmmm," she said,   
licking her lips. "This is pretty good."  
"Probably not as good as a real meal, but it does the job   
decently. What about you, Aeka? Are you hungry?"  
"Not really. I'm just thirsty. Some tea would be nice."  
"Coming right up." He made his way back over to the   
replicator and ordered a cup of tea. After it materialized, he   
removed it from the hole. "Give me a Mountain Dew," he   
demanded, as the replicator produced a tall glass of green liquid,   
which was fizzing slightly. Several ice cubes floated in the   
concoction as well.  
Handing Aeka her tea, he took a long drink of his soda,   
letting out a satisfied, "Ahhh." She looked at him curiously, then   
at his drink.  
"What's that?"  
"Mountain Dew, the beverage of gods and hyperactive   
individuals who love a sugar rush," he said, laughing. "I haven't   
drank one of these in a long time, and I had to have one."  
She raised an eyebrow, growing more curious by the   
minute. Looking back at her tea, then back at Russ' drink, she   
decided she wanted to try a Mountain Dew as well. "Can you put   
this back and give me one of those?" she asked, pointing at his   
drink.  
"I don't know if you'll like it or not. But you can try it, I   
guess." He took her tea back to the replicator and it dissolved from   
view. Ordering another soda, it appeared a moment later, and he   
handed it off to Aeka, who accepted it happily.  
"Thank you." She raised the glass to her lips, but the fizz   
from the soda hit her in the nose, causing her to scrunch her face   
slightly, and she started giggling. Trying again, she took a drink of   
the stuff, feeling the bubbles on her tongue, and then swallowing.   
She looked back up at Russ and smiled, and took another drink.   
"This is really weird, but it tastes very good. It's sweet."  
"That's what I love about it. Good stuff. This is actually   
an Earth beverage. When I was living with you guys, I kept   
raiding the fridge, hoping to find some soda or pop that I used to   
drink when I lived in America. Unfortunately, seems only healthy   
stuff made its way into the cooler."  
"That's Sasami's doing. She always worries about   
everybody eating healthy."  
"That's considerate of her. But this pop isn't really   
healthy at all. It's full of sugar, which is why it's so sweet, and it   
has really no nutritional value. But that's why it tastes so good!"   
he said, bouncing lightly on his heels.  
"Hmmm, well, it is good. I like sweet stuff from time to   
time."  
"Yeah? You like candy and sweets?" he asked, making   
his way over to a large, black leather sofa and taking a seat,   
making the couch produce a "foosh" sound.  
She followed, taking a seat next to him. "Yeah.   
Although it drives Sasami crazy when I eat it. She always warns   
me about it rotting my teeth or making me fat."  
Russ chuckled lightly, and Sasami glared at her sister for   
a moment, before returning to her lunch. "It won't make you fat if   
you eat it in moderation. A few sweets a day would never hurt   
anybody."  
"That's my favorite excuse," she giggled.  
Russ sat back and let out a sigh, and a moment later, he   
chuckled lightly. Aeka looked at him in mild amusement.  
"What's so funny?"  
He turned toward her and grinned. "I was just thinking   
about the Star Destroyer's engines blowing up. It isn't the first   
time something like this happened. You should've seen this thing   
when he first finished it. Half the time we thought it was going to   
blow itself to smithereens from the roughness of the power source   
and the engines." Closing his eyes, he continued. "The first time   
we took this thing into hyperspace was really scary. It nearly   
shook itself to pieces from the incredible stresses of traveling so   
fast. But the funny part was that Tom never put up the stupid   
navigation shields to protect us. He turned this ship upside down   
while trying to find the problem, only to find out it could've been   
solved with the push of a button. But anyway, he did find some   
other trouble spots that he smoothed over during his scrutiny." He   
opened his eyes and sat up to a more comfortable position.   
"However, he did finally get this ship running in tip-top shape, and   
it made it here without a hitch. Too bad about Mihoshi though,"   
he snickered, shaking his head.  
Aeka smiled sweetly. "She's always been like that, being   
so carefree. Sometimes I wonder why Kiyone hasn't killed her   
yet."  
"They are a comical pair, that's for sure. Order and   
chaos, all rolled into one package."  
"Yeah. So," she began, changing the subject. "What is   
there to do on this ship?"  
Russ grinned. "Just about whatever you want. There are   
many things to keep us occupied. There's a game room, which has   
all kinds of entertainment items to keep us busy, such as arcade   
machines, video games, virtual reality simulators, and other items   
of interest. The holodeck is a very advanced piece of technology   
that can simulate any kind of environment. In a way, it's like…   
well… um… what's a good way to describe it." He scratched his   
head, pondering over a simple explanation, but not really coming   
up with a clear example. "Well, in a way, it's similar to a virtual   
reality videogame, but with real locations and stuff. For instance,   
if you wanted to walk along the beach of a fantasy planet, such as   
Risa, we could call that program up in the computer, and we can   
actually walk through it. Even though its all computer generated,   
it appears real. The sand at your feet, the waves crashing into the   
shore, and the sights and sounds of the beach fill each and every   
physical sense, even though all of it isn't real. If walking along a   
beach isn't your fancy, there are others to choose from. You can   
race a car around a track, going nearly two hundred miles an hour,   
or you can fly a spaceship and battle against evil aliens, or you can   
even attend a concert, if you want. It's really a neat thing to mess   
with."  
"I think I get it. You're saying that we can, in a way, go   
to those places, but we never leave the room?"  
"Sort of like that, yes. Maybe later we can check it out.   
Or, we can take a walk now, and I can give you sort of an   
abbreviated tour of the ship. Sasami can come along too, if she   
wants," he offered, turning to look at her, who smiled and nodded   
her head.  
Sasami finished her dinner and she made her way over to   
a large, black leather chair, similar to a lazy-boy recliner that sat at   
an angle, facing the stars outside the ship. There wasn't much else   
to see, since they were so far away from Earth, and no other   
planets were nearby. She turned toward the couple on the couch.   
"I'd like that. Can we go see the game room first?"  
Nodding, Russ stood up from the couch, offering his hand   
to Aeka, which she graciously accepted, as he gently pulled her to   
her feet. Ryo-Ohki bounded up to Sasami, meowing quietly, then   
jumping on her shoulder to come along.  
"Why not transform yourself into your human form? You   
can play the games with Sasami. There should be other kids there,   
as well as adults, playing the games," Russ suggested to the cabbit.  
In response, she transformed into her child form with an   
audible 'pop.' She was dressed in a long, blue t-shirt, with a carrot   
logo on the front, as usual.  
"Well, let's go. I'll ask the others if they'd want to come   
along… or better, I'll just tell them that they can go off on their   
own and explore the ship. And they won't need to worry about   
getting lost. The computer knows where everybody's quarters are.   
All of you have been entered into the computer, and all you'd have   
to do is ask the computer where the quarters are, and it'll guide you   
right back to here."  
"That sounds good. It would be real easy to get lost on a   
ship this size, especially with all the hallways."  
"There are multiple decks too. Plus there are some ten   
thousand, if not more individuals onboard this vessel. But anyway,   
enough babble. Let's go," he said, and quickly returned the lunch   
tray and the empty glasses of tea and pop into the replicator, and it   
dissolved from view.  
Russ, Ryo-Ohki, Aeka, and Sasami all exited his quarters,   
and the door sealed itself when they left. He knocked on Tenchi's   
door, and it slid open, revealing him standing there with Ryoko   
languidly draped over his neck.  
"I just wanted to tell you guys that you can go anywhere   
you want onboard the ship. If you get lost, you can ask the   
computer where your quarters are, or how to get to another part of   
the ship. There are game rooms, places to eat, if you don't want to   
eat here in your room, and other various things. I think there is   
even a tour mode for the computer, which will guide you around   
the entire ship. The four of us are going to the game room, so   
enjoy yourselves."  
"Thanks a lot, Russ. I do appreciate you and your friend   
for taking us to Jurai. And I'm sorry Mihoshi blew up the   
engines."  
"Yeah, yeah. I've heard enough apologies about that.   
Don't worry. It has happened before. Now, go enjoy yourselves   
or I'll lock you in here," he said, grinning.  
They nodded and retreated back into their room, debating   
on where to go. Russ went to everybody else's door and told them   
the same thing, before proceeding on his way to the game room.  
  
Two hours passed by very quickly, and Tom paged Russ   
and his party over the intercom, asking them to head up to the   
bridge. Since everyone was in a different part of the ship, they all   
arrived separately, but in good time. They all approached the   
captain, who was sitting in his chair, and he smiled when they   
came up to him.  
"The engines are repaired and we're ready to go. I just   
wanted you to see this." He looked toward the helmsman.   
"Sakuya, take us to Jurai, normal cruising speed."  
"Aye, captain," she said, hitting a few keys on the console   
and then engaging the hyperdrive.  
The ship shuddered slightly, then began moving forward   
very rapidly. A force of inertia was felt, even through the inertial   
dampeners. The visible stars in the window blurred and streaked   
past the window, and then everything faded into starlines, looking   
like a tunnel of rainbow colors that swirled around the ship in a   
corkscrew fashion. Gasps came from the passengers from looking   
at the sight, awed by the beauty and almost hypnotic colors of   
hyperspace. Russ and Tom both grinned, satisfied with their   
reaction.  
"We should arrive at Jurai in a little less than twelve   
hours. Feel free to do whatever you please. Go to the game room,   
or take a walk through one of the many cafeterias, or do whatever   
else you may find of interest. Take a nap if you feel like it. My   
ship is your ship. Just don't try to blow anything up again," he   
said, winking at Mihoshi, who blushed and looked away shyly.  
Everybody bowed in appreciation, and then proceeded to   
the lift. Russ elbowed Tom in the arm lightly. "Thanks a lot, for   
taking all of us to Jurai. I really do appreciate it. And I'm sorry   
about Mihoshi's clumsiness."  
"Bah, don't worry about it. I told you that before. Shit   
happens." He shrugged his shoulders.  
"Yeah, I guess you're right."  
"Well, go join your girlfriend and show her around or   
something," Tom recommended, nudging Russ in the ribs.  
Nearly having a heart attack, he blushed fiercely and   
glared at the captain. "She is NOT my girlfriend. None of them   
are."  
"Bullshit. You mean to tell me that purple haired woman   
isn't your girlfriend? Look how she's staring at you right now," he   
said, glancing over Russ' shoulder.  
Russ carefully peeked back toward the lift, and sure   
enough, Aeka was watching him with a smile on her lips. She   
casually folded her hands in front of her and shyly looked down to   
the floor. "She's not my girlfriend. However, she is attracted to   
me, or so the others say. But I don't want a girlfriend right now.   
I've got far more important things to worry about."  
"Like what? There's a gorgeous girl over there that   
seems to want you, and you're just going to walk on by? I can't   
stand it when you DO this. Every girl who has ever held an   
attraction to you, you just become friends and nothing more!   
Why?!" he growled, flustered.  
Tom was getting really irritated over Russ' constant   
dodging of relationships. Having been in a relationship only once,   
he knew what Russ was missing, and it drove him bananas. Why   
on earth would a man not want a mate for himself? Why keep   
dodging the cupid's arrow? Tom couldn't understand it, although   
he has tried many times. Many women have held attraction to   
Russ before, but the only thing he allowed himself to do was   
become friends. Several more aggressive women have tried to   
pressure him into a relationship, but he brushed it off, or avoided   
that person from that moment on.  
Tom had asked Russ on multiple occasions as to why he   
never wanted to get involved. However, he always wound up with   
a non-definite answer. He'd dodge the question, or out of dumb   
luck, would get an interruption that would save his rear.   
Watching Russ, he could see that he was nervous and was   
again looking to dodge the question. And by the changing look on   
his face, he just found one.  
"I'll argue about this with you another day. They're   
waiting for me," said Russ, turning toward the group and making a   
hasty retreat.  
"You're damn right we're going to discuss this later. I   
still have that present to give you too, so we'll discuss it then,"   
Tom called after him as Russ got on the lift and the door closed   
behind him.  
  
"What was that all about?" asked Aeka, after Russ   
jumped on the lift and let out an exasperated sigh.  
"He's just being an a…" he stopped himself and tried to   
think of an insult that wasn't as offensive. "He's being an idiot.   
He does this kind of thing to me all the time. Drives me crazy."  
"Sorry about that." Then more quietly, she spoke again.   
"He was arguing about me, wasn't he?"  
Russ froze for a moment and hesitated. "Nothing you   
need to worry about," he said, in an unconvincing voice. He   
turned toward her and looked upon her with sad eyes. "Please, just   
drop it," he begged.  
"Okay. I'm sorry." Her complexion turned slightly   
depressed as she looked away from him.  
Russ shook his head and let out another sigh. "I need to   
take my mind off of those troubles. You guys can go wherever   
you want. I'm going to the holodeck to load up the music program   
of mine."  
"What's that?"   
"Basically a concert hall type deal with an ultra huge   
organ on the stage. Instead of synthesized instruments, it uses real   
ones. And I can enter songs into it by thought transfer. I'm just   
going to go over there and play for a while."  
"Would you mind if I joined you? I like listening to your   
music, and you haven't played any music for a while." Aeka   
smiled up at him.  
"If you want."  
"Would you mind if the rest of us joined you as well?   
Aeka's not the only one who likes listening to your stuff," Washu   
asked from behind Russ.  
He nodded. "If you would like to. It's been a little while   
since I've played it last. I can't wait to do it again." Now smiling,   
he continued. "It's real easy to compose music onto that thing   
because of the thought transfer feature. I can basically play a song   
in my head, and I can install it on the organ, then I can play it. It's   
way faster than using the organ back at your place."  
Aeka raised an eyebrow at his statement of 'Your place.'   
Didn't he think that their home was his home? Strange. However   
undaunted, she smiled and nodded as the lift came to a stop, right   
next to the said holodeck.  
Russ and company exited the lift and entered the room,   
which only resembled an area with black squares divided by   
yellow lines in a checkerboard configuration.  
"This is your holodeck? I thought this was going to be a   
concert hall?" asked Sasami, who was standing next to him in   
confusion.  
"Wait a moment." He turned his attention to a computer   
console and hit a few buttons. "Computer, load up 'Russ Organ.'"   
The air inside the room shimmered a moment, and then they were   
instantly on stage of the theater.  
"Oh my… That's really amazing," Aeka exclaimed,   
admiring the view of the place.  
A massive organ, even larger than the Detroit Theater   
Organ Society's Wurlitzer, sat on the stage in the center. Six long   
keyboards, a set of foot pedals for the organ, and another set for   
the piano, and six separate volume pedals presented themselves on   
the instrument. Hundreds of little levers and switches were laid   
out in a semi-circle around the entire console. It was truly a sight   
to behold.  
"You're going to play that thing?"  
"Yup. I've done it before." He made his way over to the   
organ and switched it on. The sound of rushing air made it to   
everybody's ears.  
Washu summoned her computer and typed in a few   
things, analyzing the holographic technology. "Russ? Everything   
in here is real," she announced, looking at him over her screen.  
"No it isn't. Everything in here is computer generated.   
They use something similar to holographic technology, but it's   
actually called particle synthesis, which can even fool the most   
advanced sensors. We just call it a holodeck because it's easy to   
remember, and we were trekkies as well. We just liked Starwars a   
whole lot more," he said, winking.  
"Impressive. Really. This is the first time I've actually   
run into technology that I haven't seen or invented before."  
"Then this must be quite a learning experience for you."  
"Yup."  
"Well anyway, why don't you guys take a seat down in   
one of the rows, and I'll play for a while," he suggested, gesturing   
with his hand to the hundreds of rows of chairs.  
"Thank you," Aeka said, as she and the group made their   
way offstage and took a seat in the first row. Russ sat down on the   
bench and hit a few keys, and the sound of trumpets sang their   
notes quite loudly, but not uncomfortably loud.  
"This will be fun," Russ said to himself as she brought up   
the first song he wanted to play. "I haven't done this one in a   
while. Nice and long too." He pressed a few buttons and many   
sounds and sound effects rumbled out of nowhere, almost startling   
the audience. Quickly typing on a nearby computer keyboard, he   
entered the song title, and a variety of huge screens behind the   
organ appeared, showing different camera angles and scrolling the   
song title. 'Babylon 5 – Variations on a Theme' moved across the   
bottom of the screen as Russ began to play a variety of   
instruments. His hands flew across two of the keyboards as his left   
foot pressed the foot pedals in perfect time, and his right foot   
adjusted two of the volume pedals simultaneously, as the other   
instruments continued to play automatically.  
Everyone's silence from the audience told him they were   
definitely impressed with the dramatic improvement of the sound   
quality. The chairs vibrated slightly with the bass notes and   
drumbeats, adding an awesome thrill to feel the sound as well as   
hear it. They all listened eagerly for a few minutes, and then the   
holodeck door slid open again as several other aliens poked their   
head in, unnoticed by everybody else, since the door was at the   
very back of the theater. They entered and took seats throughout   
various parts of the hall, listening to his music.  
It wasn't long before the hall began to fill up at a more   
rapid pace. Aeka just happened to sense something odd and she   
looked behind her, seeing nearly a hundred people seated in the   
chairs, and more coming in. The others noticed and looked too,   
and smiled in satisfaction.  
Over thirteen minutes later since the beginning of the   
song, Russ finally wound it down and finished it, and a roar of   
applause from behind him rang in his ears. Taking a deep breath,   
he stood and bowed, as the audience continued to applaud.   
Surprising to Tenchi and his family, Russ smiled and sat back   
down, and typed in another song onto the keyboard. 'Theme to   
Armageddon' began to scroll across the bottom of the screen as he   
loaded up the said song and began to play.  
The audience continued to grow in size, becoming larger   
and larger. Soon, nearly a thousand people sat in the seats, and   
still more were filing in, all enjoying the music.  
Russ played numerous different pieces. Titles he played   
included the theme to Air Force One, An American Symphony,   
which was from Mr. Holland's Opus, and The Last Starfighter.   
Other songs he played included several tracks from the Kull the   
Conqueror soundtrack, covering the 'Ship Brawl' scene and   
'Kull's Escape.' He really enjoyed doing those because it sounded   
like a normal orchestra, and then it started kicking with electric   
guitars and other various instruments that you'd never expect to   
hear. 'Ship Brawl' was his favorite though. He had a smile on his   
face the entire time he played that title, especially once it got   
rolling with the 'extra' instruments.  
After while, he switched gears from orchestrated only   
songs to something a little more interesting, so he began to play   
songs from Robert Miles. Songs such as Children, the original and   
dreamland versions, Landscape, and Red Zone, all graced the   
audience, including others.  
An hour and a half later, he finally stopped and stood up,   
the roar of applause almost deafening. He bowed graciously and   
then spoke, and surprisingly, his voice carried over everybody   
quite loudly from the intercom system.  
"Thank you very much. I need a quick break. We'll take   
a fifteen minute intermission or whatever, and then I'll play a little   
more."  
The murmuring of the audience increased in volume as   
hundreds of people got up from their seats and made their way to   
the concession stand, which was also a part of Russ' program.   
Popcorn, drinks, and other snack foods were served to the people,   
as they all idly chattered with each other.  
Russ jumped down off the stage and landed with a heavy   
thud on the floor in front of his group. "So, have you been   
enjoying the performance?" he asked, grinning, and knowing full   
well what the answer was going to be.  
"I knew you were good, but I had no idea you were THIS   
good," Aeka said, smiling widely. "You're fantastic. Even though   
some of the songs were quite… interesting, you made them all   
sound great."  
"I agree. You are really good at this. It even makes me   
want to try it sometime," Tenchi added, grinning. Nobuyuki   
smiled at hearing that, as did Katsuhito.  
"How come you're not panicked from being in front of so   
many people, yet, you were so paranoid in front of just us?" Aeka   
asked.  
"I really don't know. Performing in front of huge groups   
of people doesn't really bother me a whole lot. Performing in front   
of individuals, on occasion, makes me nervous."  
"But why?" she persisted.  
Russ shrugged his shoulders. "I guess it's because I can   
be ridiculed so much more easily. Not that you guys specifically   
would do that, but I've done stuff in front of other small groups,   
and it's real easy to hear one of them start bashing me. That's   
where my nervousness comes from."  
"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. But anyway, you've done a   
fantastic job with the music you've played so far."  
"Yes, I think we'd all agree to that," Ryoko added.  
"Thanks a lot guys. Now, I had some… other ideas." He   
turned toward Sasami. "How would you like to get up on stage   
and sing, 'I'm a Pioneer' in front of everybody? I'm sure they'd   
love to hear it."  
"Really? You think they would? But… I'm a little   
scared about doing that in front of so many people," she said,   
worriedly, but excited at the prospect of doing a live performance.  
"Don't worry about anything like that. Everybody here   
won't care if you accidentally make a mistake. Even I make   
mistakes from time to time, and nobody says anything about it.   
They're very polite here."  
She smiled and contemplated it for a few moments, then   
nodded her head in agreement. "Okay! I'll sing it on stage for   
you."  
Russ chuckled. "Alright." He turned toward the rest of   
the group. "Would you guys like to come on stage and sing as   
well? You can do the songs I wrote for you." He snapped his   
fingers, and six microphones appeared onstage. Small, dark,   
phantom computer screens phased in just behind the microphones,   
resembling Washu's computer in appearance. A mic. also   
appeared on the organ. "We'll do only the songs you've done   
before, so you'll be more comfortable with it."  
Ryoko, Aeka, Tenchi, Washu, and Mihoshi all looked at   
each other, worried expressions crossing their faces. "Um… I   
don't think I'm ready to perform in public yet," Aeka said,   
nervously.   
"The same goes for me too," Mihoshi added.  
"Ditto," Washu said.  
"Aw, come on! It'll be fun! I won't have you do it right   
this minute, since I'm going to do a few other songs I composed   
for you guys. But once I finish, you're welcome to come up on   
stage and sing."  
"I don't think so, Russ. I'm sorry." Aeka didn't meet his   
gaze.  
"Aww, spoiled sport. Oh well. At least Sasami isn't   
chicken," Russ teased.   
Aeka glared at him. "I am not chicken! I just don't want   
to."  
Russ' grin expanded a little. "Yeah right. Well anyway,   
Sasami, you can do your song. Do you want to do it right after   
intermission, or do you want to do it after I do a few others?"  
"After you do your songs," she said, smiling excitedly.  
"Okay. I'll be right back. I got to use the restroom."   
Russ leaped back on the stage with ease and walked behind a   
curtain. He returned a few minutes later and checked the time,   
noticing that most people were back in their seats, and the rest of   
them were still filing down the aisles. Stepping toward the middle   
of the stage in front of the organ, he waited for everybody to get   
seated. He bowed, and a polite applause reverberated the hall as he   
took a seat at the bench again. Placing his left hand against the   
panel that accepted music via thought, he transferred the first song   
he wanted to perform. It took about ten seconds, and then he   
turned toward the standard computer keyboard and entered the   
song title. 'Sad Aeka (Aeka Bojo)' scrolled across the bottom of   
the screens. Just under that, in smaller print, said, 'Debut.'  
Aeka looked at the title and raised her eyebrows in   
surprise, as did Sasami and Tenchi. The rest of them turned to   
look at the princess, and she shrugged her shoulders in response.   
She turned her attention back to Russ as he began to play.  
Sounds of sad piano notes filled the auditorium, and were   
eventually joined by other instruments. The camera that displayed   
Russ' face showed that he wasn't smiling at all, but wasn't really   
concentrating either. He actually looked sad, despite his lips   
twitching themselves into a grin from time to time.  
The princess watched him and how carefully he tapped   
each key in sequence, and realized that must be the song he   
thought of when he saw her on the first day. She also thought   
about the day she was supposed to leave with Sasami, and how   
unhappy she felt as she stood near the lake and quietly sobbed to   
herself while thinking about Tenchi. Strangely enough, Ryoko,   
Tenchi, Sasami, Nobuyuki, Katsuhito, and Mihoshi all thought   
about that day as well, and how Aeka must've felt.  
Russ continued to play, and an uncharacteristic silence   
fell over the audience, as they watched his expression on the   
screen. They knew that he felt the emotion of the song, but was   
trying to hide it. He almost looked a little misty as he drew the   
song to a close.  
Polite applause greeted his ears as everybody   
congratulated his new masterpiece. He stood and bowed.  
"Thank you," he said, after the applause died down.   
"That was for one of my new friends that I met just recently. I   
hope she liked it," he said, glancing at Aeka, who smiled and   
nodded in return. He let out a sigh of relief.  
"I have a few more that I'm going to do, then we'll have   
some fun!" He sat back down on the bench and again placed his   
hand on the pad, transferring another song. He again turned   
toward the other computer keyboard and entered the song title,   
'Ryoko's Theme.' And under that, remained the 'Debut' word.  
It was now Ryoko's turn to smile as she held Tenchi's   
hand and watched Russ begin playing. Surprisingly, the song was   
a stark contrast to the previous song he had played. It was   
considerably happier and faster paced. The first thing that ran   
though her mind was the first time she tried to seduce Tenchi in the   
cave. It was quite amusing, especially the trek just to get to where   
Washu was imprisoned. It fit the mood perfectly.  
Tenchi chuckled lightly as he squeezed Ryoko's hand and   
also thought about that time. Too bad he couldn't go back and   
redo that entire episode again. He would've been far more willing   
if he could.  
Russ finished the song and immediately jumped into a   
different mix of the same thing, without missing a beat. And after   
he finished that one, he remixed it again and did the same song a   
third time. Once he finished, more applause emanated from the   
audience in appreciation. He placed his hand on the transfer pad   
once again for a few moments.  
Turning around once again, Russ bowed. "Thanks a lot,   
everyone. But now, I'd like to introduce one of my friends, who   
I'd like to bring up here to sing for you guys! Please give a warm   
welcome for Sasami Jurai!"  
The audience began clapping as Russ began to play   
'Happy Sasami' on the organ. The little princess stood up and   
skipped over to the stairway and came up on stage, and waved at   
everybody. They applauded a little louder and with a lot of   
enthusiasm, and Sasami smiled, reveling in the acceptance. She   
approached one of the microphones and it automatically lowered   
itself to her level. Russ faded out her theme and stopped.  
"Are you ready?"  
"Yes!" she said, full of excitement.  
Turning back toward the organ, he transferred the song   
and began to play, and Sasami began to sing as the audience fell   
quiet. She sang loud and clear, and her voice carried to the far   
reaches of the concert hall. The screen behind the microphone   
displayed the lyrics, just in case she forgot them, and the larger   
screens behind the organ changed part of their focus to Sasami,   
displaying her from various angles as the lyrics scrolled across the   
bottom of each screen, and the title, 'I'm a Pioneer' remained on   
the thing as well.  
A deafening roar of appreciation exploded from the   
audience when she finished, nearly causing her to jump out of her   
skin. A standing ovation ensued, and people where whistling   
loudly and cheering at the top of their voice, as well as applauding.   
It was unlike any sensation she had ever felt before, and she never   
felt so good as she did at that moment. Russ stood up and moved   
next to Sasami and waved his hands, drawing a loud cheer, and   
then he pointed both his hands at Sasami, drawing a mind-blowing   
roar of shouts from the audience. He bent down, giving her a hug,   
thanking her, and then she and Russ bowed to the audience. Russ   
allowed her to take a seat up on stage, materializing a chair with   
the snap of a finger. Aeka smiled at her sister and congratulated   
her, as did everybody else, even though she could barely hear him   
or her over the still approving audience.  
"Up next, I'd like to invite a few more friends up here on   
stage to sing as well. Little Washu! Come on up here!" he   
announced, waving her up on stage and drawing a polite applause   
from the audience.  
Washu looked at him with horror written all over her face   
as she shook her head rapidly, and mouthed the words, "No way,"   
refusing to get up.  
Russ smirked. "She needs a little more encouragement,   
audience!"  
In response, the applause nearly doubled in volume and   
others started cheering. Finally becoming flustered and knowing   
that Russ was as stubborn as a mule, she tossed her hands up in the   
air and smiled, waving to the audience as she came up on stage.   
Moving over to Russ, she whispered in his hear. "I'm going to   
turn you into a water sprite once we're done here." An evil gleam   
twinkled in her eye. Russ just chuckled.  
"We'll do your favorite karaoke song. I like that one."  
"Fine. Doesn't look like I'm getting out of this," she said,   
allowing an annoyed grin to cross her face. Sasami giggled and   
applauded Washu.  
Russ took a seat at the organ and transferred another song   
to it, then entered the title on the keyboard. 'Photon, Proton,   
Synchrotron' appeared on the screen as he started playing.  
Soon after they finished that piece, Russ invited Aeka up   
on stage, encouraging her to sing that title she handed him about a   
week before. Of course, she was shy as well, and required a little   
extra incentive to get her on stage, but she eventually complied.   
Russ entered the song into the computer and then typed out the   
song title. 'Ojosama to Obi' appeared on the screen.  
Once she was finished with that, Russ brought up Ryoko,   
and invited her to sing a song from Gundam Wing, which she   
learned just a few days before. The song was already entered into   
the system, so he just inputted the title. 'Brave Eyes' appeared on   
the screen.  
Ryoko finished her song, and then Russ invited Tenchi   
and Mihoshi to the stage. Entering his last song into the system   
and typing out the title that read, 'Talent for Love.'  
Russ began singing the song, and soon after, everybody   
joined in who was on stage. Ryoko, Aeka, Sasami, Tenchi, and   
Mihoshi all joined him, and the audience clapped along with them.   
It was a lot of fun for that title.  
They finished a few minutes later, and the audience   
erupted in applause and cheers. Russ stood up and moved next to   
everybody, joining hands, and all of them took a bow at the same   
time as the audience continued to cheer loudly. Russ allowed them   
all to step off the stage and take their seats again, and he got rid of   
the microphones and chairs by snapping his fingers.  
Out of nowhere, Tom tapped Russ on the shoulder and   
grinned one of his little sadistic smiles.  
"What's up?" he yelled.  
"I want to play as well," he yelled back, entering   
something on a phantom console that appeared in front of him. A   
large drum set appeared on the right side of the stage. "It's time   
we have some fun! You got almost a fifth of my crew in here, so I   
want to entertain as well. And yes, I can play those drums over   
there."  
"Okay, cool! What shall we do first?" The audience   
began to quiet down and look on in interest.  
"Let's do a few numbers from Yanni. Let's start with   
Swept Away. I don't want to play too long. I still need to drag   
your butt to a particular part of the ship where your present awaits.   
And I still need to chew your ass out for pulling the girlfriend thing   
again."  
"Sure. Did you reconfigure the system to remove the   
drums?" he asked, pointedly ignoring the rest of his statement.  
"Yeah. Everything is all set to go." He turned and   
walked over to the drums and sat down, facing the crowd. Russ   
returned to the organ and typed a few things into the keyboard.   
'Swept Away' appeared on the screen.  
Russ started to play, and a few moments later, Tom began   
to play the drumbeat. The audience sat back and listened,   
enthralled that the captain was up on stage with Russ, showing him   
what he could do.  
They finished a few minutes later, drawing a round of   
applause for the both of them. Both participants stood up and   
bowed, then conversed a few moments later. Russ grinned when   
Tom whispered the next song in his ear, and he nodded in   
approval. They both returned to their seats and again, Russ keyed   
the song title into the system, changing the title to 'Marching   
Season – Live Version' on the screen.  
Russ began to play, the sound of piano once again filling   
the hall, and Tom began to tap the hi-hat from the drums. A few   
moments later, they both got rolling and they played for a few   
minutes, when Russ stopped, but Tom continued. Beating the   
drums in various rhythms, then changing it to something else a   
moment later, he was able to get the audience clapping with him.   
Russ watched in amusement, applauding along with the crowd. He   
changed rhythms again and made it sound like a railroad steam   
engine was chugging down the track, and in response, Russ hit a   
few keys on the organ, resembling the whistle. Again, the   
audience clapped along with it, and when he finished that one, a   
loud cheer came from the listeners. Resuming the original rhythm   
he started out with, Russ resumed playing the piano and other   
instruments that he could handle, and allowed the computer system   
to play the rest. Once they finished, they drew a standing ovation   
from the spectators and deafening roar of applause and cheers.   
Standing up and bowing to the audience, they both shook each   
other's hands.  
Russ turned toward the audience. "Okay, I've done   
enough for one day. Whew. Thank you so much for listening to   
me play, and allowing my friends to sing, and on top of that,   
listening to your captain play the drums."  
The audience applauded and stood up, as most of them   
began shouting, "Encore!" Both Russ and Tom looked at each   
other, then back at the audience, which increased the volume of   
their cheering, encouraging them to continue.  
Russ smiled and looked at Tom, then nodded. They both   
returned to their seats and began to play Flight of Fantasy. Once   
they finished that, they moved on to Days of Summer, Desire,   
Renegade, Nightingale, and a couple others. They finally finished   
about an hour later. Once again, the audience gave them a huge   
round of applause and cheers, and after that, began to disperse   
back to their duties onboard the ship.  
"Whew! That was great!" Russ exclaimed as he hopped   
off the stage in front of his group.  
"Yeah. I haven't done that in a while. I'm glad a lot of   
people onboard this ship love music." Tom followed Russ and   
jumped off the stage onto the floor.  
Aeka turned toward them. "You both were great! That   
was fantastic music. I'm glad I came here to listen to you play."  
"We all are," Tenchi added, and the entire group nodded   
in appreciation, and then gave them both their own round of   
applause.  
"Thanks a lot guys. Well, I'm going to go see what Tom   
wants to give me, and then I'll be heading back to my quarters to   
nap for a while. I want to be a little more rested once we get to   
Jurai."  
"That sounds good. I think I'll go back to our quarters as   
well," Aeka added, drawing a nod from Sasami.  
"Tom, where's your chief engineer? I'd like to talk with   
him for a while," Washu asked.  
"What for?"  
"I'd like to see some of the technology that makes this   
ship run. I may even be able to think of ways to improve your   
existing equipment. After all, I am the Number One Genius   
Scientist in the Universe," she cackled.  
A bead of sweat appeared on Tom's head. "I suppose.   
He should be in engineering, but let me check. Computer, locate   
Buu George."  
"Buu George is in main engineering," the computer   
responded.  
"There you go. I'll let him know you're coming. You're   
Washu, right?"  
She raised an eyebrow in response, glaring at him.  
Russ nudged Tom gently and whispered something in his   
ear. "Oh, yeah. You're Little Washu, right?"  
"That's correct," she smiled. "And thank you."  
"No problem. Come on Russ," he said, taking him by the   
arm and almost dragging him out of the holodeck. "Time to have   
ourselves a little discussion about women."  
Russ just growled something incoherent but reluctantly   
followed. "Why does everybody need to play matchmaker around   
me?" he muttered to himself.  
  
Walking back toward the hanger bay, Russ began to guess   
at what this wonderful gift could be. Tom seemed to be really   
excited about giving it to him as well. Continually coming up with   
blanks, especially after walking past the hanger, he finally lost his   
patience.  
"Okay, what is it you're giving me?"  
"Patience. It's in the fighter bay," Tom said, giving him a   
grin.  
"Ahhh, so you've also been building fighters too?"  
"Yes. And at present moment, yours is the only type of   
fighter in existence right now. It's just as unique as this Star   
Destroyer."  
"Cool. Can't wait to see it," he said, as they rounded the   
corner and the bay doors opened themselves.  
Rows and rows of various fighters lined the massive hold.   
All types were here, except they were all imperial craft. Tie   
Fighters, Tie Interceptors, Tie Bombers, and a few Tie Advanced   
were visible from his current vantage point. All of them were   
equipped with shields Russ saw, noticing the small out-of-place   
generators on the fighters. A couple assault transports sat on the   
floor, and the fighters were suspended from docking clamps from   
the ceiling. All except one, which was sitting on the floor on   
landing struts. Tom made a beeline directly for it and Russ   
grinned widely.  
"You know what this is, right?" Tom asked, presenting   
him with his new space fighter.  
"Of course. It's a Tie Defender. It's fully functional?"   
Russ asked, examining the thing from top to bottom, checking out   
the four laser cannons and the dual ion cannons on top.  
"You bet. It has a hyperdrive, super heavy shields,   
enhanced thrusters, enhanced engine, and many other things that   
would make it impossible for a normal man to pilot the thing. I   
knew how strong you were, so I modified this thing accordingly. It   
can pull turns like you wouldn't believe, and it exerts g-forces that   
would almost crush a normal man. I think the estimation came out   
between twenty and thirty g's. Trust me, this ship is the most   
advanced starfighter in existence. The only thing it doesn't have   
right now is a beam weapon. I didn't want to install that without   
asking you first. You can have a tractor beam, a jamming beam, or   
a decoy beam. It's up to you."  
"I'll take the jamming beam. Just make sure that it can   
stop any kind of ship from firing, including capital ships. There   
may be times I want to keep it from firing on me, but I don't want   
to destroy the thing, but just prevent it from firing."  
"That's what the ion cannons are for, silly." Tom   
laughed, slapping Russ on the back.  
Russ looked at him in annoyance. "I don't want to blow   
every electrical system on the enemy. I just want to keep them   
from firing."  
"Whatever. I'll have that installed in about a half hour,   
and then it'll be yours to take home. You won't have to travel in   
that stupid little spacepod anymore."  
Russ smiled with pride. "Thanks a lot man. I really   
appreciate it."  
"You can thank me by not pulling that girlfriend crap with   
Aeka," Tom started.  
Russ closed his eyes and prepared for a heated argument.   
He took in a breath, counted to ten, and began his long discussion   
with the captain.  
  
Walking into his quarters, Russ saw Aeka and Sasami   
both on the couch, drinking a cup of tea. He looked quite stressed   
out and tired, but he managed a smile and a warm greeting.  
"What did you guys talk about?" Sasami asked,   
innocently.  
"That's between him and Tom. Don't be so nosy," Aeka   
chided her sister, resting her hand on her shoulder.  
He sighed, trudging over to the chair and plopping into it.   
"Thanks, Aeka."  
She smiled kindly in response.  
"We should arrive at Jurai in about seven hours. I'm   
going to catch a few winks. You can do whatever you want.   
Catch a few winks, go back to the game room, or take a walk   
around the ship, but it's up to you."  
"I think we're going to stay here and sleep ourselves. It'll   
be early evening on the particular part of the planet we'll need to   
land at, and I want to be rested enough to greet my parents and my   
friends."  
"I see. You need to keep up your regal appearance. Well,   
okay. Go ahead and take the bed. I'll just doze off here in the   
chair."  
"I don't think so. You take the bed. Sasami and I will   
sleep on the futons that are over there in the corner," she   
admonished, pointing to the beds that were near the windows. The   
colors of hyperspace still swirled past outside.  
Russ growled. "Why must you be so difficult? You're   
going home, and you're the princess of the planet we're going to.   
Take the darn bed and sleep like a princess."  
"And I wouldn't be going home if it weren't for you and   
your friend. I don't mind sleeping on the futon," she retorted.  
"Humph. If you're sleeping on the floor, then I will too.   
There's no way I'm going to take a nice comfortable bed while the   
Princess of Jurai sleeps on my floor!"  
"You're being ridiculous!"  
"Am I? You're the one refusing to take the darn bed!"  
"Because I don't want to!"  
"Well I don't want to either!"  
They both fell silent and glared at each other. But Russ'   
gaze softened a few moments later. "Please, just take the bed."  
"No."  
"Sasami, you take the bed," Russ ordered, looking at her.  
She hesitated, and before she could answer, Aeka piped   
in. "No, she'll sleep on the futon next to me."  
"I wasn't asking YOU, your highness," Russ growled.  
"I don't CARE. We're sleeping on the futons, and that's   
FINAL!" she shot back, not giving up any ground.  
Russ' temper was about to explode, but he allowed it to   
dissolve in a few moments. "I don't get it. I try to be nice and it   
always gets shoved back in my face. It's almost as if nobody   
wants me to be nice or offer them things." He scratched his head.   
"If you don't want to take the bed, then I guess that's okay," he   
sighed in defeat.  
Aeka's aggressive attitude melted away and she looked at   
the floor, embarrassed. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have gotten angry   
with you. But you've been so nice and charitable to both Sasami   
and myself, and I haven't really reciprocated it."  
"I never said you had to. I make these little gestures   
because I want to, and it makes me feel good when I make   
someone happy," he answered, looking out the window. "When   
someone is happy, I'm happy. And the way I make other people   
happy is by doing things or giving things to them."  
She stared at him for a few moments, and then smiled.   
"Thank you. Your gestures do not go unappreciated, although   
some of them were unnecessary."  
"So you say. It would've made me happy if you took the   
bed."  
She sighed in exasperation. "Would you STOP that?" she   
giggled. "You're making me feel guilty!"  
Russ cracked a small grin, not meeting her gaze. "Then   
take the bed."  
Aeka shook her head and started laughing. "You just   
don't give up, do you?"  
"Nope. And by the sound of it, neither do you," he said,   
turning toward her and looking her in the face.  
She nodded. "Very observant."  
"So you're not going to take the bed? Please?" Russ   
begged.  
"For the last time, no."  
"Fine. Be that way." Russ stood up and went to his room   
to retrieve a blanket, while Aeka and Sasami went to their futons.   
They returned the two cups of tea to the replicator before lying   
down. Russ returned and flopped into his chair and converted it to   
reclining mode.  
He looked over to Aeka and Sasami, and they were now   
dressed in their sleeping clothes. Russ noticed something else too.  
"Hey Aeka?"  
She turned around and looked at him. "Yes?"   
"Where'd you get the necklace? I just noticed it. It looks   
very pretty on you."  
She smiled and placed her hand over the pendant.   
"Tenchi and Ryoko gave it to me a little less than two weeks ago.   
They said that they knew about how depressed I was, and they   
wanted to get me something nice."  
"They sure do have good taste in jewelry, in that case."  
She smiled and nodded. Sasami and her both laid down   
on their futons, and pulled up their blankets. However, the little   
princess looked a little nervous.  
"Russ?" she timidly asked.  
"Yeah?"  
"You aren't going to pull any more pranks on me this   
time, are you?"  
Russ started laughing. "Thanks for reminding me. I had   
forgotten all about it."  
Her face flushed with fear as she looked at her sister.  
"What pranks is he talking about?" Aeka asked, turning   
toward her little sister.  
"Well, remember that day I woke him up with the   
whipped cream? Well he's been pulling pranks on me too."  
"Like what?"  
"Every day, for a week straight, I woke up in a different   
place."  
Aeka sat up and looked at her. "What do you mean?"  
"Well, the first day, I woke up on the couch. The second   
day, I woke up on the kitchen counter. The third day I woke up in   
the shed. Then the next day I woke up in the hallway outside our   
room. The day after that, I woke up outside under Ryu-Oh. On   
the sixth day I woke up on the shrine steps, and on the last day I   
woke up on the roof!"  
Aeka glared furiously at Russ, who lay in his chair,   
quaking with glee and barely restrained laughter. "Don't you dare   
do anything that would scare her like that again!"  
"A prank is a prank. She wanted a prank war, and   
unfortunately for her, she challenged the prank master," he   
snickered. "But I promise I won't do anything tonight or while   
we're on Jurai. Is that okay?"  
"No, I want you to promise that you won't pull another   
prank on Sasami again!" she demanded.  
"Sorry Princess, but that's asking too much," he laughed.   
She fumed silently at her bed for a few moments, when   
Sasami nodded her head. "It's okay. I'm sure this isn't the last   
prank I'm going to pull on him," said the little princess, winking.  
"Then we have a deal? No pranks until we get back   
home?" Russ asked, looking over at her.  
She nodded. "We have a deal."  
"Alright then. At least you're more reasonable than your   
sister is," Russ snickered, causing Aeka to redden and shake with   
barely controlled anger. "Well, time for bed, if that's okay with   
you ladies."  
"FINE," Aeka growled, laying back on her futon and   
snuggling in her bed.  
Pulling the blanket over his head, Russ began to drift off   
to sleep. "Computer, dim the lights and block out the windows."   
The computer did as it was told. "Now, play the sound of waves   
crashing into the shore, quietly." A second later, the sound of   
water lapping a shoreline was heard, at just the right volume level   
to not be disturbing, but be perfectly relaxing. Everybody drifted   
off to sleep very quickly, and Azaka with Kamidake remained at   
the door, doing their ever-vigilant guard duty. Ryo-Ohki dozed off   
on top of Sasami, purring contentedly.  
  
"Russ?"  
No answer.  
"Hey Russ!"  
No answer.  
Tom started getting flustered at not getting any response   
from him over the comm. system. Assuming he must've been   
sleeping, an old videogame wake-up routine popped into his head.  
"Wake up…. Wake up… WAKE UP!!!!!" Tom shouted   
into the intercom. A moment later, the sound of three groaning   
people gave him the response he was looking for.  
"What the hell do you want?" Russ asked, irritably, still   
drowsy with sleep.  
"We're going to be at Jurai in twenty minutes,   
sleepyhead. Get your butts up here to the bridge on the double."  
"Yes master," Russ retorted, sounding like an ogre from   
Warcraft II. Tom chuckled in response. "Did you already wake   
everybody else up, if they were sleeping?"  
"Yeah. Washu is already up here, Kiyone and Mihoshi   
are on their way, and the others were taking naps like you guys   
were, but they're all on their way now."  
"Alright. We'll be there in a few minutes," Russ said,   
yawning loudly. Tom laughed then turned off the intercom.  
"Saiyans sleep like logs," Tom explained to Washu, who   
watched the event with amusement.  
"So it seems."  
"Well," Tom began, sitting back in his chair, getting more   
comfortable. "What did you and my chief engineer talk about?"  
"Quite a few things. He gave me a tour of engineering,   
and showed me a lot of new stuff. What really impressed me is   
this ship's power source."  
"You like that, eh?" Tom's smile of satisfaction grew.  
"Yeah. Except I think it's a bad idea, especially if this   
ship should happen to explode or if something goes wrong with the   
singularity."  
"Well, it's very small, but it produces an enormous   
amount of power. It took quite a while to get the technology to the   
point to make the singularity stable, and to be able to draw power   
from it."  
"I can see that. But anyway, I also showed him how to   
improve some items on your ship that were rather inefficient. I   
also gave him the technology necessary to integrate transporters   
into this ship."  
"Hopefully it is something different than what we've tried   
already."  
Washu's eyebrow raised a nanometer. "What do you   
mean?"  
"We had tried to duplicate the transporters that we had   
seen on Star Trek. We did get them working, but they refused to   
work correctly through the armor on this ship."  
"Oh? What is this armor made out of, anyway?"  
Tom smiled slightly. "Sorry, but I can't reveal that. I'll   
just say that it is extremely strong against energy and kinetic   
weapons, and blocks, thus far, all known forms of transportation.   
It's almost the perfect armor," he said, smiling in glee.  
"I'm pretty sure my stuff will work. The transporters I   
invented are unlike most others."  
"We'll give anything a try. It does get irritating to have to   
take a transport to leave the ship," he said, scratching his chin.   
Something then started nagging at his conscience. "What do you   
expect as payment for services rendered?"  
She waved her hand. "Think nothing of it. Just seeing   
this ship, and you giving us transportation to Jurai, is more than   
enough for me."  
"You're very welcome."  
The lift door slid open, revealing Kiyone and Mihoshi.  
"Ahhh, the galaxy police. We should be there very   
shortly." Tom said, greeting them with a smile.  
"You do realize that you've basically broken every speed   
limit the GP have a law for, don't you?" Kiyone smirked.  
"You have speed limits in space? Why?" Tom asked,   
amused.  
"For safety, of course. There are other spacecraft out   
here, you know."  
"Yes, I know that. This hyperdrive is far more advanced   
than you think. It takes the computer several minutes to calculate a   
safe course to enter hyperspace. It checks everything between   
point A and point B. And then lets us know when it's safe to go."  
"Still, you should obey speed laws."  
"Whatever. I'll have to exit hyperspace anyway when I   
pull into a planetary system. Hyperdrive won't work due to the   
gravity of the planets."  
Kiyone sighed, seeing as how he missed the point. "Well,   
I'm certain nobody saw us. We're moving way too fast for them to   
even detect this ship."  
"Yeah. I love it. Plus I could always cloak us," Tom   
said, grinning.  
A few minutes of silence passed and once again the lift   
door opened, this time revealing the rest of the group. Katsuhito,   
Tenchi, Nobuyuki, Russ, Aeka, Sasami, Ryo-Ohki, Azaka,   
Kamidake, and Ryoko all filed out of the lift and approached the   
captain.  
"Welcome back to the bridge. You all look well rested."   
Tom grinned, especially at seeing Russ' annoyance, probably from   
the rude awakening.  
"Yes, we slept very well. When shall we reach Jurai?"   
Aeka asked.  
"Sakuya? How much longer?"  
"I'm about to disengage the hyperdrive, sir. It'll just be a   
few seconds," she answered, without turning around.  
"Excellent." He turned toward the group. "Exiting   
hyperspace looks sort of interesting, especially when we do it near   
a planetary system. Everything starts off real tiny, but in the span   
of two seconds, it gets huge."  
As if on cue, Sakuya deactivated the hyperdrive and the   
multitude of colors that was hyperspace faded back into a bright   
starfield, and a planet rapidly appeared in front of them. They   
decelerated to normal impulse speed, and approached Jurai.  
  
Drinking a cup of tea and watching the radar screen, a   
young Jurian cadet drummed his fingers on the console in front of   
him. He had been on duty for the last four hours, and not one blip   
showed up on the monitor. Not even an asteroid. No ships, no   
shuttles, no fighters, no nothing. It was boring him to death, but it   
was his duty to just sit and stare at that screen for the next three   
hours. It was just boring. Boring, boring, boring. And tomorrow   
promised more of the same thing.  
Shifting uncomfortably in his seat, then adjusting his long   
white robes while brushing a stray hair out of his face, he took   
another drink of tea and looked over at the guy next to him.  
"Hey Asussa?"  
"Yeah?" came the gruff answer.  
"Want to go to the pub after work tonight? I hear they're   
supposed to have some smooth samisen music there this evening."  
"Are you buying? Because I'm broke," he responded,   
hitting a few keys on his console and bringing up a computerized   
card game. He also shifted positions and fidgeted with his robes.   
"Why'd they make us wear these ridiculous clothes?" he muttered   
to himself, just loudly enough for his friend to hear.  
"I have no idea," he whispered back. "Why are you   
broke? I thought you had a mountain of money stashed in the bank   
or something?"  
"Rouyu! What on Jurai ever gave you that idea? I make   
as much money as you do, and we regularly blow our cash!"  
"Hey you two! Be quiet down there and pay attention to   
your jobs!" The commander growled. He wasn't in the mood for   
any arguments today.  
"Yes sir. Sorry," Rouyu responded. Then, more quietly,   
he turned back to his friend. "I'm sorry about that. I thought you   
were rich or something. You're always so clean and you always   
have new clothes and stuff."  
"Doesn't mean a thing. I just spend my money differently   
than you do."  
Suddenly, a huge blip appeared on radar, very close to   
Jurai.  
"Sir! Incoming… something! It's extremely large,"   
Rouyu barked.  
"Well? Is it a ship or what, cadet?"  
"I think it's a ship, sir. Unknown configuration. It   
definitely isn't in our database."  
"Can you bring it up on the monitor?"  
"Yes sir. It is in visual range." He keyed a few   
commands and an image of a section of Jurian space appeared on a   
large screen. In the middle of the screen a huge, arrowhead shaped   
vessel cruised toward the planet.  
"Hmmm… What the hell kind of ship is that? Open up   
communications channels with that vessel."  
"Yes sir. Channel open."  
"Attention unknown starship. This is Jurian space traffic   
controller Ubey in charge of this sector of space. Identify   
yourselves."  
It took a few seconds, but the cadet finally spoke. "We're   
picking up an acknowledgement and are receiving a transmission."  
"Put it on screen."  
"Yes sir."  
The screen that showed the ship faded and changed to   
show the interior of the bridge. A muscular, white uniformed man   
sat in a chair in the middle of the screen.  
"This is Captain Thomas Franklin of the Imperial Star   
Destroyer Gray Wolf. We have some passengers who would like   
to make a visit to your planet."  
Everybody in the room fell silent at hearing what class of   
ship it was. The name, 'Star Destroyer,' sent shivers down a   
couple people's spines, and a few others snickered at the title.  
"Halt your ship at once and we will send out an escort   
momentarily. If you do not comply, we will use force," the   
commander responded, glaring at Tom.  
A woman, wearing a blue, green, and purple kimono,   
appeared on the screen and stood next to the captain. Her purple   
hair was tied in one long ponytail behind her back, and her   
amethyst eyes bored into the commander. Recognition smashed   
through his head as his face pulled into utter surprise.  
"Princess Aeka?!" he stuttered.  
"You will grant us passage to Jurai at once."  
Still in shock, he only stared at the screen with his mouth   
gaping open.  
"Is there a problem?" she asked, sternly.  
He snapped out of his trance a moment later. "No, your   
highness. No problem at all. We will have an escort to show you   
to your landing pad shortly."  
Tom raised an eyebrow and sighed. "Sorry, but this ship   
cannot make planet falls. It must remain in orbit. Can you find me   
a place above the palace where I can pull into a synchronous   
orbit?"  
"I'm sorry sir, but we cannot allow that."  
"You WILL allow it," Aeka snapped, clearly not in the   
mood to argue with some dumb lackey. "I am the First Princess of   
Jurai, and you will obey my orders."  
"Yes ma'am. Sorry for the misunderstanding." He   
quickly killed the comlink to the ship.  
"Rouyu! Inform the Emperor that his daughter has   
arrived, and prepare to receive them at once!"  
"Yes sir!" came the response as the cadet speedily   
punched in a bunch of keys on his console, and contacted the   
Emperor.  
"And get those escorts out there to them!" he barked.  
  
"Now that's how to get things done!" Tom said, grinning   
at Aeka.  
She blushed slightly and smiled. "Sorry about that. I've   
known him for a while. He's known for giving people a hard time,   
and I wasn't in the mood for it today."  
Two Jurian warships came into view and sped toward the   
Star Destroyer, taking up escort positions on either side of the   
starship. They looked like tugboats, since they were only about a   
third the length of the vessel. Both of them looked so small and   
frail next to the ship, since they were composed of wood and the   
Star Destroyer of steel. The captains of both vessels admired the   
size of the starship, and tried to judge the new ship's firepower, in   
case it became hostile. But all things considered, they didn't want   
to get into a brawl with a ship so much larger.  
"Well, our… escorts are here," Tom snickered. "Are   
those things made of wood?"  
"Yes. However, that wood is considerably stronger than   
you'd think. Plus our ships are shielded," explained Aeka, looking   
at the two vessels, which at one point, tried to destroy her and the   
Yagami.  
"I guess they'd have to be to survive out here," the   
captain replied. "We've never come under attack, but we've had   
to navigate through an asteroid field once. We went into one   
intentionally to test the endurance of this ship and the weapons.   
We emerged without a scratch."  
"When did you do this?" Russ asked.  
"Quite some time ago. You had left to go somewhere or   
meet someone, and we had finished the shields and weapon   
systems, and I wanted to go test them."  
"You should've had me come with you, just in case   
something went wrong. I would've turned around and came back   
if I had known you were just about to finish those particular   
systems and were going to such drastic measures to test them,"   
Russ said.  
The Gray Wolf entered synchronous orbit above the   
palace, still flanked by both warships.  
"Well, everything turned out okay in the end. Well   
anyway, we're here, so I'll have one of my pilots take you guys   
down in one of my escort transports. When you guys were on your   
way up here I ordered a few men to take all of your baggage to   
one, so there is no need to use your spaceship. I won't be   
accompanying you right away, but I'll be available at a moment's   
notice if you need me." Tom smiled at everybody. "Welcome to   
Jurai! Prepare to disembark!" He turned toward the spiky haired   
one. "Russ! Take them to the transport. I'm sure they're already   
waiting for your arrival."  
Russ smirked at him and headed toward the lift, followed   
by his entourage.  
  
The trip down to the surface of Jurai was uneventful to   
say the least. The transport that Tom allowed them to use was   
extremely large, and was also heavily defended by the many   
turbolaser turrets positioned around the outside of the ship. Escort   
transports were supposed to be used for starbase construction due   
to their extraordinarily large cargo capacity, but they could also be   
used as troop transports as well. Needless to say, everybody had   
plenty of room to sit down or stand, but the vessel didn't have   
many windows to look out of. Everybody stood or sat near the   
cockpit, watching the planet come into view as they sped toward   
the landing pad outside of the palace.  
Two fighters escorted them down to Jurai's surface. Russ   
couldn't wait to take his Tie Defender for a spin, so he took that,   
and another veteran pilot took a Tie Advanced. They both flanked   
the escort transport on either side, keeping in near perfect   
formation. However, Russ started doing weird things with his   
fighter, but still keeping perfect position. He slowly spun the craft,   
until he was upside down, and he flew like that for a few moments,   
and then started spinning like a lathe. He eventually stopped, but   
he wasn't flying straight as an arrow anymore, but instead, was   
slightly wandering around his flight path, almost as if he was a   
drunk driver.  
They passed through the atmosphere and approached the   
landing site, and the roar of the ion engines of the fighters and the   
rumble of the escort transport became audible. It wasn't long   
before two of the three vessels landed on their designated pad. The   
Tie Advanced circled once, then headed back to the Star Destroyer.  
With a loud hiss, the transport's ramp and door opened,   
allowing the light of the setting sun to grace everybody's vision,   
and the sweet smell of Jurai's warm air flooded the cabin,   
replacing the sterile, recycled oxygen. The colors of the outside   
were bright and vivid, and it caused quite a thrill for Aeka, Sasami,   
and even Katsuhito, to finally be home once again.  
Two white-robed Jurian knights approached the landing   
pad as everybody filed out of the steel gray transport, and Russ   
stumbled out of his fighter, still dazed from spinning. He shook   
his head, clearing out some of the cobwebs that swam through his   
brain, and he resisted the urge to throw up. Fortunately nobody   
noticed him. He tried to regain his composure as he waddled over   
to the group.  
Everybody conversed with each other, not yet noticing the   
two knights that stood a dozen feet away. However, Sasami turned   
toward them a moment later, and recognition spread across her   
face as she ran over to the one with the blue buttons.  
"Azaka!" she shouted, wrapping her arms around him as   
he knelt to receive her, returning her hug warmly. "It's so good to   
see you again!" She let go of him and gave the knight in red   
buttons a hug. "You too, Kamidake!" Her face beamed with pride   
and happiness.  
"Hello, Princess. Welcome back to Jurai! I must say it is   
a pleasant surprise to have you come back home, even though it   
was unannounced. We sorry that we didn't have time to properly   
receive you," Azaka said, standing up and patting Sasami on her   
head.  
Aeka smiled at the two Jurian knights and shook her head.   
"Don't be concerned about that. I'm just happy to be back home   
again." The Crown Princess of Jurai walked over to the human   
Azaka and Kamidake, and gave them both a warm hug. "It's good   
to see you two again."  
"Likewise, Princess. You seem to have brought a large   
group with you this time. Lord Yosho also came with you, I see,"   
commented Kamidake. "And I see a new face as well… is he   
alright?" he asked, looking at the Saiyan, who was still trying to   
stand up straight. He had a green tinge about his face too.  
Aeka looked back at him and started giggling. "He was   
doing stunts with his fighter. It's no wonder he's sick."  
Russ took in a few deep breaths, letting them out slowly,   
and his skin complexion returned to normal. "I won't be doing   
that again anytime soon," he groaned to himself. Suddenly feeling   
he was the center of attention, he blushed lightly and chuckled to   
himself. Not wanting to be rude, he made his way over to Azaka   
and Kamidake and introduced himself. "Hi! I'm Russ. How are   
you guys doing?"  
"We are well. Thank you, Russ. It's nice to meet you."   
Azaka extended his hand, which Russ took, but an overwhelming   
sensation slammed through Azaka's mind. He trembled slightly at   
the knees and looked into Russ' face with almost complete shock.  
Upon grasping Russ' hand, he felt an awesome rush of   
raw power emanating from the newcomer. This power was   
incredible, and unlike anything he had felt before, except when he   
fought the dark knight, who was under the rule of Kagato.   
However, this power was different from theirs. It wasn't bound to   
anything, for one. Not like his power, which relied on Jurai, or the   
Jurai Power. Russ' energy was similar, but not exact. And even   
though Russ was holding back and letting out a very mere portion   
of energy, it was still overwhelming to him.  
Noticing his compatriot's face, Kamidake moved over to   
his side, concerned for his friend. Russ also bore a look of   
concern, wondering what happened. He quickly released his hand   
and Azaka staggered slightly, and then recovered, shaking his head   
in disbelief.  
"Are you alright, Azaka?" Kamidake asked.  
"Yes." He looked into Russ' face, still feeling blown   
away by the energy he sensed. "That is some incredible power you   
have there. Almost overwhelming, as a matter of fact." Azaka   
stood on his own now, no longer being supported by his   
companion.  
"I'm sorry about that. I thought I was holding back   
enough power. I'll bring it down to that of a normal human."   
Azaka watched as Russ concentrated a moment, then smiled.   
"Kamidake?" He extended his hand toward the other knight, who   
looked on him skeptically. "I'm sorry about that. I didn't mean   
any harm." Russ kept his arm outstretched.  
Kamidake carefully took his hand, and didn't feel   
anything out of the ordinary. "No harm was done. It's a pleasure   
to make your acquaintance." They shook hands, and then   
withdrew.  
Everybody else greeted the two knights warmly, as a   
variety of hugs and handshakes took place. They conversed for a   
few more minutes, and then the two knights led them inside the   
palace to see the two Empresses and the King of Jurai.  
Slowly making their way down the aisle of the throne   
room, they stopped about a dozen feet away from the steps to the   
throne. Most everybody knelt, except for Aeka, Sasami, and   
Yosho.  
A stern faced man sat on the throne, glaring down at all of   
the arrivals, clothed in ornate robes, his purple hair and beard   
hanging in three perfectly vertical lines. A blue haired woman   
stood to his right, who almost looked like Sasami's clone, and a   
dark haired woman stood to his left, both of them radiating their   
extreme happiness.  
Misaki couldn't contain herself anymore and she made   
her way down the steps, and crushed Sasami in one of her famous   
hugs. "Sasami!!"  
"Mommy!" Sasami hugged her mother in return, as both   
of them shed tears of joy.  
After a moment, Misaki returned to her feet and looked at   
Sasami's sister. "Ahhh, little Aeka!"  
Aeka shuffled her feet slightly and drummed her fingers   
together, trying to avoid what she knew would probably be   
coming. "It's been such a long time since I've seen you last,   
mother. I'm very glad to see you doing well."  
Misaki's happiness melted away and her eyes narrowed   
viciously, promising a gruesome fate to her daughter.  
Aeka perspired heavily, then glanced over her shoulder.   
Ryoko was snickering lightly, and everybody else just looked on in   
amusement. She sighed in defeat and drew in a deep breath. "My   
Mommy!"  
Everybody in earshot facefaulted, except for Yosho and   
Sasami.  
Instantly going from a look of death to a look of near-  
bliss, she crushed her daughter in a hug. "Aeka! It's so wonderful   
to see you again!"  
"Oh Mommy!" she cried, holding her with tears of   
happiness streaming down her cheeks. "It's so good to see you   
again! I've missed you!" She continued to sob into her mother's   
shoulder as Misaki held her daughter tightly. Funaho made her   
way down the steps and gave Sasami a hug.  
"Auntie Funaho!"  
"Sasami!"  
They both gave each other a warm, comforting squeeze,   
both very happy to see each other again.  
The pleasantries continued for a few more moments as   
Misaki's super hugs crushed everybody, and then got a pleasant   
handshake from Funaho. Except for Yosho, who she hugged   
warmly, then glared at menacingly, ready to give him a harsh   
tongue lashing for not coming to see his poor mother in so long.  
Eventually the two Empresses set their sights on Russ,   
who was standing a few feet behind everybody, his hands folded in   
front of him, as he looked at the floor.  
"Who is this?" Misaki asked, giving him a good looking   
over and nearly drooling at his muscular physique.  
"Mother, this is Russ. He is the one who made it possible   
for us to come home so quickly," Aeka explained, introducing him.  
Her eyes lit up like the sun back on Earth. She grabbed   
him in a bear hug, trying to crush him like she did with everybody   
else. "Thank you for being so kind to Aeka and Sasami, and   
bringing them home to us! I don't know how to thank you!"  
Russ looked down at the top of her head with his own   
head beading with perspiration. "It's okay. It was no trouble at   
all."  
Funaho made her way over to him and bowed   
appreciatively. "Really. We appreciate all the trouble you went to,   
to bring our daughters and son home."  
Russ shook his head and gave up. "You're welcome. It   
was my pleasure. My friend is still in orbit. Will it be ok if he and   
some of his crew come on down to see the Startica festival? That   
is why we all came."  
"That will be no problem at all. Your friend is welcome   
to come down here with as much of his crew as he wants," Funaho   
said, smiling. Azusa, however, glared at the newcomer, and   
remained silent.  
"Thank you. I'm sure he'll appreciate a vacation. His   
whole crew won't come down at once, but probably about half will   
at a time. Maybe less, depending on how many people want to   
go." Russ noticed the hard stare from Azusa, and he returned it   
with his own emotionless look.  
Misaki finally let go of him and stepped back, smiling,   
until she noticed what direction Russ was looking off to. She   
turned around and saw her husband continuing to rudely stare at   
him, not having said a word the entire time everybody came inside   
the throne room.  
"Honey, what's wrong? Stop being so rude and introduce   
yourself to this handsome young man!" Misaki demanded. Funaho   
nodded beside her, also frowning at her husband.  
A quiet growl was released from the king, but he rose to   
his feet and came down the steps. Turning his attention away from   
Russ, he bent down and gave Sasami a warm hug, and then he   
nodded toward Aeka, proceeding to give her a hug. He glared at   
Tenchi, but nodded, and continued through the group in much the   
same fashion, until he got to Russ. Continuing to give him a hard,   
cold, emotionless stare, he still didn't say anything, not even a tiny   
greeting or acknowledgement. He simply turned around and   
walked back to the front of the group. Russ stared after him,   
immediately not liking him in the very least. He clenched a fist at   
his side and resisted an urge to tell the king off, but thought better   
of it and remained silent.  
Misaki and Funaho watched the little scene play out   
before them, not understanding what their husband had against the   
newcomer. Deciding to ask him about it later, they remained silent   
as well.  
"Welcome home, Aeka, Sasami, and Yosho. We will do   
our best to make your stay a most pleasant one," the king   
announced, maintaining his scowl. "My servants will show you to   
your rooms. Your luggage should already be in several of them. If   
you'll excuse me, I have some urgent matters that require my   
attention." He turned and went back to his throne as everybody   
filed out of the hall. Misaki and Funaho tagged along, with Misaki   
walking next to Aeka and Sasami, and Funaho walking between   
Aeka and Yosho.  
Azaka and Kamidake followed just behind the group.   
However, Azaka's eyes never left Russ for very long. He still   
couldn't believe the incredible amount of power coming from him.   
And he said he wasn't releasing that much either. Hoping that   
Russ would give him a demonstration later, he decided to ask him.  
"Excuse me, Russ, but I have a question I'd like to ask   
you," he started.  
Russ slowed down a little and walked next to the knight.   
"What can I do for you?" he asked, smiling.  
"Could you show me your full power later today? What I   
felt from you when I shook your hand was extremely high. I'm   
just curious to see how much power you really have."  
Misaki heard the conversation from behind them. "Russ   
can summon energy too?"  
The Saiyan turned back toward her and nodded. "Yes I   
can. But I don't want to reveal my full potential. There is no need   
for me to, for one thing."  
Upon hearing this, Misaki's look of surprise turned to a   
frown. "I want you to show me your full power," she decreed,   
regally. "I want to see what has Azaka so concerned or   
impressed."  
"I'm afraid that's a bad idea," Russ said, nervously.  
Misaki's glare became more intense. "I said I want to see   
your full potential."  
Aeka turned around and looked at him. "You better do as   
she says," she whispered to him. "She's not one to gives up at all."  
Russ shook his head. "No. I'm sorry."  
Misaki looked about ready to explode, but Russ just   
looked at her with his poker face, not revealing the nervousness he   
felt from seeing her fury. She clenched her fists at her sides and   
gave him her most disapproving stare, one that brought sweat   
drops to everybody's head that was watching and listening to the   
exchange.The Empress stopped and got right in Russ face   
and demanded once more that he reveal his power to her, which   
was again pointedly and politely refused. Everybody else stopped   
walking down the hallway as well, wondering what was going to   
happen.  
On impulse, she reached out in an attempt to snatch him   
by the ear and drag him to the training room, but she grabbed   
nothing but air. Russ was now standing next to Kamidake as he   
watched Misaki's expression go from a frown to one of pure   
surprise. She looked to the right, and then to the left, where her   
gaze landed on Russ again. Azaka and Kamidake both shared   
Misaki's bewildered expression.  
"How…" she started, then she resumed her glare and   
made her way over to Russ again. "You're coming with me,   
young man, to the training room. Now."  
"I'm not revealing my full power. And no amount of   
threats will change my mind, either," Russ grumbled out, still   
looking at her with a poker face.  
Suddenly, her gaze softened and she smiled. "I've never   
known anyone to be brave enough to defy anybody in the Jurai   
Empire. If I ask nicely, will you show me your potential?"  
Russ looked at Aeka, who's expression told him to stop   
being so thickheaded and stubborn. He sighed, and shook his   
head. "I'm sorry, but revealing that much power is not a good   
idea. I only do it when I do extreme training or when I have to   
fight."  
Misaki's eyebrow arched dangerously as she continued to   
scrutinize his last statement. "If I show you mine, will you show   
me yours?"  
"You just don't give up, do you?" Russ grinned and   
shook his head.  
"No. Never. I always get what I want, from anybody I   
want."  
"There is a first for everything. Unfortunately, I'm sorry   
to have be the one whom you do not get what you want."  
She finally sighed and shook her head. "You're stubborn,   
just like Aeka."  
"Almost as stubborn," he grinned, drawing a glare from   
Aeka. "I've had the honor of staying in the same house with   
Tenchi and his family for about two weeks," Russ revealed. "I'm   
only there at planet Earth to defend it against a very powerful   
enemy, but I don't want to get into that right now. We're here to   
enjoy ourselves, and I always wanted to visit Jurai and see the   
Startica festival."  
"The festival begins the day after tomorrow," Funaho   
explained. "Why did you come so early?"  
"I wanted to tour the planet and take in as many sights as   
I could. Plus I figured a family reunion could be in order if we   
arrived early." Russ smiled meekly.  
Misaki's eyes lit up once again as she smiled. "You are   
so thoughtful!" she cried, grabbing him in another hug. Russ   
resisted the temptation to zanzoken away, wondering if she was   
going to try to drag him to the training room again. He decided   
that he might go there later, but only to exercise, and maybe spar   
with some of the Jurians. Russ and the group resumed walking   
toward their rooms.  
"Have you guys eaten?" Funaho asked, hearing a couple   
stomachs croaking in the group.  
"No. We slept most of the trip and we've only been   
awake for about forty-five minutes. We didn't have time to grab   
ourselves something to eat," Sasami explained.  
"Then I must insist that you attend dinner with us."   
Misaki turned toward Russ. "I'm sure I won't get an objection   
from you for THAT demand, now will I?" She elbowed him in the   
stomach and laughed.  
"Nope. No objection here." He smiled in return.  
"Excellent! Dinner is being prepared as we speak. We'll   
call for you once it's ready." Misaki stopped walking. "Here are   
your accommodations. Aeka, Sasami, we saved your rooms.   
They're just as you left them."  
"Thank you, mommy!" Sasami said, smiling up into her   
mother's joyous face.  
Everybody filed into his or her own separate rooms,   
which were simple, but comfortable. They all contained a large,   
soft bed, and each room had dressers, chests, a mirror, and mostly   
standard bedroom amenities. Every room had a large window that   
provided a grand view of the surrounding area, and let in plenty of   
outdoor illumination.  
  
Only a mere fifteen minutes after everybody got   
themselves settled in and took a quick shower, a servant came to   
everybody's door and informed them that dinner was going to be   
served shortly, and that every person was invited to attend. Of   
course, the invitation was accepted immediately and they all   
followed the servant to the royal dining room.  
It was extravagant. A white marble table, some fifty feet   
long and ten feet wide, if not larger, sat in the middle of the room,   
surrounded by a huge number of gorgeous Jurian wood chairs.   
Wood pillars made from the most skilled craftsman on Jurai lined   
both sides of the room, stretching up to the extraordinarily high   
ceiling. Windows with beautiful colored glass were spaced evenly   
throughout the rectangular room, letting in a stunning array of   
colored light, and the trees outside caused the light to dance around   
the floor. The floor itself was made of beautiful wood tiles that   
were laid out in an overwhelmingly complex, but amazing and   
wonderful patterns. It was a dining hall fit for kings and his   
guests.  
Aeka, Sasami, and Yosho all entered, already knowing   
what to expect, but everybody else stopped and gawked at the   
room, overwhelmed by the sight of it. Not even Russ couldn't stop   
staring at the sheer magnitude of the place.  
Emperor Azusa sat in his huge throne-like chair at the   
head of the table, flanked on either side by two smaller chairs,   
which were for his two wives. Filing inside and taking seats near   
the king, he greeted them with nothing more than a nod. On the   
right side of the table, Aeka took a seat closest to her father and her   
Aunt Funaho, and then Yosho, Tenchi, Ryoko, Washu, and   
Kamidake. On the opposite side, Sasami sat nearest to her mother,   
and next to her sat Ryo-Ohki, and then Nobuyuki, Kiyone,   
Mihoshi, Russ, and lastly, Azaka. Aeka's two guardians, Azaka   
and Kamidake, flanked both sides of the entrance, guarding the   
entrance to the room.  
The servants had already laid out the necessary utensils   
for eating the upcoming meal. A pair of chopsticks for each   
person, a cloth napkin, a plate with a bowl sat on top of a beautiful,   
light gray, cloth placemat. Six forks and five spoons sat on either   
side of the plate, made of gleaming silver metal, and a crystal wine   
glass sat behind the plate and bowl.  
Russ sat down and perspired lightly, as did everybody   
else who weren't used to eating high class. Sasami and Aeka   
giggled across the table, watching everyone's changing   
expressions.  
Russ turned toward Azaka. "Is this all for me?" he   
whispered over to him.  
"Yeah," he answered quietly. "Just start from the outside   
and work your way in. They serve multi-course meals here, which   
is why you have so many utensils."  
"Okay. What's for dinner, anyway?" Russ asked, not   
trying to be discrete anymore.  
"I'm not sure. We'll have to wait and see," Azaka   
replied.  
Azusa straightened up a little and leaned forward slightly.   
"So Aeka, why did you decide to come back home, unannounced?"  
The princess blushed slightly and shrugged her shoulders.   
"It was kind of sudden, and I didn't think about contacting you   
when we made plans to come to the Startica festival. I thought it   
would be a nice surprise for you and mother."  
"I see," he answered, gruffly. "How long did it take you   
to get here?"  
"A little less than twelve hours, once we got underway."  
Azusa's eyes widened considerably as did Azaka's,   
Kamidake's, and both empresses. "Only twelve hours? No ship   
can travel that fast," Azusa's surprise turned into a frown of   
disbelief.  
Aeka looked over at Russ, who was also frowning at him,   
mainly for doubting the truthfulness of his own daughter. She   
turned back toward her father. "It's true. We came from Earth to   
here in a little less than twelve hours. The ship we used to come   
here is currently in orbit above the palace."  
"I'll have to see this vessel after dinner. Anyway," his   
gaze softened ever so slightly. "How have things been with you?"  
"Great! All things considered, I've been doing very   
well." Aeka smiled widely and sweetly, causing the Emperor's   
usually tough features to soften a little further.  
"Have you and Tenchi been getting along well?" he   
asked, eyeing the young Jurai prince with contempt.  
"We're… not in love, if that's what you're asking. We're   
only friends. Ryoko is his...." she trailed off, wondering how she   
should describe the relationship between the two.  
Azusa almost let out a sigh of relief. Almost. However,   
he did smile. "I'm happy to hear that you're happy. Sasami?   
How about you? Have you enjoyed living on Earth?"  
"Oh yes," she answered happily. "Everything has been   
just perfect back home." The Emperor's eyebrow rose at hearing   
her call the Earth her 'home.' He wasn't happy about that at all.  
"You are home, Sasami. Jurai is your home, not Earth,"   
he told her, sternly.  
"But, I've lived there for almost a year and a half! It's   
been my home for all that time," she answered him, wondering   
why he was being so mean. "And I want to go back home once the   
Startica festival is over with."  
The Emperor furrowed his eyebrows together and allowed   
his temper to almost get the best of him, until Misaki put a hand on   
his shoulder. "She is right. The Earth has been her home for all   
that time, so technically, it is her home. But let's talk about   
something else," she said, preparing to change the subject. "So   
Ryoko and Tenchi are lovers now, is that it?"  
Tenchi and Ryoko blushed slightly at being called that,   
but they both nodded a yes. They continued to smile shyly as they   
looked at each other, filled with love.  
"Aww. Aren't they cute together?" she said, clasping her   
hands.   
After a few more moments of embarrassing the two, the   
first course of their meal was brought to the table. To start, they   
began with a light, green salad, and a variety of dressings to choose   
from. Sasami and Aeka both chose a traditional Jurian dressing,   
but everybody else struggled with the variety, especially Russ.  
There was a bowl of each dressing brought out for   
everybody, and you were able to pick the one you wanted. Russ   
took his fork and carefully dunked it into each dressing, tasting it   
to see if it suited him, and cleaned off his fork after each test. He   
eventually came upon one that tasted very similar to the Bleu   
Cheese dressing he loved so much back on Earth, so he picked that   
and drizzled it over his salad. Everybody else followed Russ'   
example, and dunked their forks in each variety of dressing, tasting   
it to see if it suited their fancy.  
The salads disappeared after a few minutes, except for   
Russ', which vanished in about two seconds, his plate scraped   
clean. Both Azaka and Kamidake stared at him with mixed   
motions, and having various phrases run through their minds.   
Ones like, "Did he even taste it?" or "Geez, he must've been really   
hungry," ran through each mind.  
Russ laid his fork down in its original place, folded his   
hands over his lap, and patiently waited for the next course in the   
meal. He remained quiet and self-conscious, until Misaki noticed   
he didn't have any food in front of him.  
"Didn't they give you a salad, Russ?" she asked, watching   
him with eyes that matched Aeka's eye color.  
"Yes. It was very good. Thank you," he answered   
quietly, looking down toward the middle of the table in front of   
him.  
"Would you like more? We have plenty," she offered.  
"No thank you. I'll just wait for the next course."  
Several servants came around with bottles of wine, and   
poured each person a glass. Upon reaching Russ and asking for his   
glass, he politely refused and asked if they had anything non-  
alcoholic. The waiter looked at him strangely, and then offered   
him sparkling red grape juice, which he accepted with gratitude.  
Aeka couldn't help but giggle at his morals, which she   
figured were just a little high strung. Even though she was mostly   
a casual drinker, she didn't see a problem with having one or two   
drinks at dinner, even if a person didn't consume alcohol regularly.   
Tenchi was about to object as well, but Ryoko silenced him before   
he spoke.  
The next course of dinner was brought out promptly after   
the last person finished his or her salad. Three varieties of miso   
soup were brought out to the table, and three clean bowls for each   
person. Everybody helped themselves to the soups, and consumed   
it speedily. Compliments went around the table and idle   
conversation ensued, but again, Russ remained silent, since nobody   
was really talking directly to him. Azaka and Kamidake noticed it,   
and decided to try to break the ice with him.  
Azaka went first. "So, what race are you?"  
Russ turned toward him. "I'm known as a Saiyan, or   
Saiya-jin. We're a very rare people because of a catastrophe   
almost ten centuries ago."  
"I see." Kamidake nodded his head. "I've never heard of   
that race before. But from what Azaka told me, you are a very   
powerful individual. Tell me, how do you control the amount of   
power you use? That's something we really don't have much   
control over."  
"It's a learned ability. It takes a little concentration, but I   
can use as much or as little energy I need to get a job done. It also   
makes it useful to be stealthy around individuals who can sense a   
power level, like myself."  
"You can sense energy coming from people without a   
device?" Azaka asked.  
"Yes. I can sense your energy, Kamidake's energy, the   
Empresses, the King, and the others around the table who possess   
the Jurai Power," Russ told them. "A couple people here can do   
that too. Can't you guys?"  
"Yes, but we're surprised someone else, who isn't a   
Jurian, can. Have you been in many fights?" Kamidake asked.  
"Unfortunately, yes. I've had my fair share of battles.   
None of them were pleasant. I've always tried to fight the good   
fight, but it hasn't been easy." Russ thought a moment. "Hey,   
how come you guys are named Azaka and Kamidake, and Aeka's   
two guardians is also named that?"  
"It's a long story." Azaka said, looking down at his   
empty soup bowl. "It wasn't very pleasant, either."  
"I'm taking that it had something to do with the Kagato   
who took over the throne of Jurai?" Russ mussed, looking across   
the table at Kamidake, who fretted slightly.  
"Yeah. It was a grueling battle that we nearly lost, but all   
of us came out on top in the end," Azaka said, proudly.   
Russ smiled. "Then it was a good battle. Hard fought   
victories are always the best and most satisfying." He sighed and   
looked toward the cook's door, which had just swung open, and a   
bunch of servants exited, each holding a try of food. "Here comes   
course three," Russ said, his mouth salivating in anticipation.  
  
An hour later, everybody finished their meals and idly   
chatted with each other. Russ mainly conversed with the two   
knights, but that suited him just fine. He wasn't much of a   
conversationalist, so it satisfied him and also made the two knights   
happy, since they really didn't have many people to talk to who   
knew about battles and fighting like they did. Azusa even   
lightened up a little once he got a little liquor inside of him. Ryoko   
overdid it again, as usual, and her face was flushed red from an   
overabundance of booze in her system. Aeka was also flushed red,   
but nowhere near as bad as Ryoko. Tenchi looked slightly pale,   
mainly since he wasn't a drinker at all, almost like Russ. Sasami   
didn't have any wine, but instead, chose the same sparkling red   
grape juice that Russ drank. Nobuyuki and Yosho were also   
slightly red from the delicious wine, as was Washu. The two   
Empresses weren't flushed at all, since they could handle that style   
of wine much better than everybody else.  
The room had started to get dark a little while ago, so the   
indoor illumination kicked in, keeping the remaining light in the   
dining hall constant. It wasn't long before the night insects started   
singing their songs outside of the windows.  
The Emperor finally stood up and smiled. "Thank you for   
coming to dinner," he said, swaying slightly from side to side,   
trying to keep his balance, however, his speech remained clear and   
commanding. "I hope you find your accommodations adequate for   
your stay. Tomorrow, you all can do as you please. The day after   
is when Startica begins, and you're all welcome to attend that."  
A chorus of gratitude came from everybody who was   
seated at the table. "Now," Azusa began, placing a hand on the   
table to steady himself. "I must go to bed. I have an early start   
tomorrow, and I'm going to have one heck of a hangover."   
Everybody laughed in good humor, and he stumbled his way back   
to his bedchambers, letting out a hiccup before he tried fumbling   
for the door handle. Everybody else stood up and said their   
goodnights, and proceeded back to their own rooms for a night of   
restful slumber. All except for Russ, who walked outside the   
palace and stood in the warm, moist air. Walking down the steps   
and making his way over to a nearby garden, he took a seat on a   
bench and looked up at the night sky, admiring the two moons that   
were eclipsing each other. The sky was filled with stars, and he   
could even see a beautiful red and violet nebula. He continued to   
sit there, taking in his surroundings, and he didn't notice Misaki   
walk up to him.  
"Hello, Russ," she greeted him, quietly.  
He jumped slightly from being startled, but he calmed   
down and smiled up at her. "Hi. Is there something I can do for   
you?"  
Surprised at his assumption that she wanted something,   
she shook her head and laughed. "No. I just happened to see you   
come outside and sit down here on the bench. You looked lost in   
thought."  
"No. I was just enjoying the scenery and air of your   
planet. It's the first time I've been here, and I didn't want to miss   
anything." He looked back toward the sky and inhaled another   
deep breath, releasing it slowly, through his nose. Surprisingly, his   
allergies didn't bother him at all so far.  
Misaki smiled warmly. "Do you mind if I sit down?"  
"No, go right ahead." He scooted over a little and she   
took a seat next to him. They both sat in silence for a few   
moments. "It's a beautiful night."  
"Yes it is. I like to come out here at times and sit here on   
the bench, and just think. It's quiet and very relaxing. It's a good   
thinking spot." She gazed up at the nebula that Russ looked at a   
few moments ago. "Russ?"  
"Yeah?" he answered, turning toward her.  
She looked directly into his black eyes. "What do you   
think of Aeka?"  
Russ nearly fell out of his seat at her directness. "W…   
What do you mean?" he stuttered.  
"Do you like her?"  
Russ sighed. "Only as a friend. Nothing more."  
Misaki looked slightly hurt. "Do you think there is a   
possibility of anything more growing from your friendship?"  
Russ looked down at the soft, green grass just in front of   
his feet. "I don't know. I've never been in a relationship before.   
I've avoided all attempts at a relationship with anyone."  
"How come?"  
"I don't know. I guess I'm afraid of rejection or   
something. I really don't know how to explain it." Russ shook his   
head, not meeting her soft gaze. "I've seen a lot of relationships   
go sour and the heartache it causes. Some say that it is better to   
have loved and lost than to have never loved at all. I don't think I   
agree with that."  
Misaki became thoughtful. "That's an interesting piece of   
philosophy." She scooted a little closer to the Saiyan and she   
lowered her voice a notch. "Aeka seems to like you, you know."  
Russ nodded. "I thought she was becoming a little   
attracted to me. But I don't want that. I just want to be friends.   
That's all I ever want."  
"Aeka isn't like other girls. She's special, in her own   
way." Misaki sighed and continued. "She told me a little bit about   
you and why you came to Earth. I must say that you're very brave   
and very heroic for always fighting for good. Knowing you could   
die and sticking to the fight is the sign of a true hero." She looked   
over at Russ, who was looking in the opposite direction. She   
began to wonder if he was paying attention, so she poked him in   
the arm. He turned toward her and met her gaze. "I want to thank   
you for protecting my daughters and everybody else in the   
universe. If this Zorpheus became immortal, he would be   
unstoppable. It seems the only person who is in his way, that   
could make a difference, is you. I want you to know that if you   
need any help, any help at all, you let me know, okay?" she said,   
firmly.  
"Thank you for the gesture, but there is nothing you can   
do. I must do this alone. And I cannot let myself become   
sidetracked with a relationship until this trial is over. I'm sorry. I   
don't mean to hurt Aeka if I have already, but I just can't. And I   
won't let myself, either." His face became downcast. "I'm   
actually a very cold person emotionally. Usually I'll tell a person   
straight out what I mean or want. I'm very clear-cut about such   
things, and unfortunately, even if something comes along that   
would hurt someone else's feelings, I still will tell them whatever it   
was. I don't beat around the bush and I'm blunt at times,   
depending on the situation and how I feel at the time. I've hurt   
people in the past, and I will not do that to Aeka or any of her   
friends. I try to stay away from them as much as possible, so I   
don't disrupt their lives, and I bury myself in my training."  
Misaki listened to him explain all of this, and nodded her   
head. "I do see what you mean. But Aeka tells me differently.   
She says you're very warm and caring, compassionate, and fun to   
be around. Not only that, but she thinks you're handsome. That's   
quite a compliment coming from her. It's rare she finds someone   
that she really likes, and she likes you. You're a very lucky guy. I   
sincerely hope you don't pass up someone like her. I don't think   
you'll find another."  
"That may be, but she may find happiness in someone   
else who is more suited for her. If Ryoko didn't become fully   
involved with Tenchi, she would have. He's also warm, caring,   
compassionate, and never looks to hurt anybody, either   
intentionally or accidentally. Tenchi doesn't seem to be shy   
around women either, where I am a little." He stopped and let out   
a yawn. "I don't like groups of people, even when they're close   
family. I'm a loner. Always have been, and probably always will   
be. I've never considered the prospect of having a companion   
along the way. And I'm not sure I'm ready for that yet." Russ   
fumbled with his t-shirt that he wore from Earth.  
"I also want to thank you again for bringing my daughters   
home for Startica. We've missed them tremendously. We did visit   
last year, but it was a very short one. The King had brought Aeka   
a suitor, which Tenchi defeated rather easily. They never even   
traded blows." She chuckled, remembering that pink haired,   
arrogant fop go flying into the water as a result from a tidal wave   
from Mihoshi's shuttle. "Still, thank you."  
Russ shook his head. "Don't worry about it. It was   
nothing. I did it because I like to be generous at times. If I make   
someone happy, I feel happy."  
Misaki brightened up considerably. "Do you want to   
make Aeka happy?"  
Russ groaned, realizing what was coming next. "I'm   
sorry, but I can't. Not now. I don't want to become attached to   
her and her me, and then get defeated in the upcoming battle.   
She'd never live it down and she'd probably try to save me. She   
would get killed as well, and I WILL NOT allow that. Not now.   
Not ever," Russ decreed, sternly. "I refuse to risk her life for   
something that I need to carry out. It's not fair to her."  
"It's her choice to make, you know," she said, calmly.   
"And you're right. She would be by your side every step of the   
way, even if it meant mortal danger. She's done it with Tenchi and   
Ryoko before, and I know she'd do the same for you."  
"She was able to make a difference with Tenchi. She'd   
just get herself killed if she got involved with one of my issues."  
"We're pretty powerful too. I don't think you're giving   
her or us much credit," she accused, her eyes narrowing slightly.  
"I know. I've sensed your power, and I've sensed Aeka's   
as well. However, in comparison, I'm far more powerful than   
you'd imagine." He looked away, embarrassed that he started to   
brag about his power again.  
"How powerful?"  
"Very powerful," he said, quietly, and looking at a bush   
that was a dozen feet away in front of him. "Almost godlike in   
comparison."  
Misaki's eyes widened considerably, and then she   
relaxed. "I see. I wonder exactly how much power you'd consider   
godlike."  
"Well, I have no idea how powerful your gods are   
supposed to be, so I guess it's a bad analogy. Sorry about that."   
He let out another soft sigh and brought his hands together to rest   
on his lap. "I'm still sorry that I cannot be with Aeka. I never   
wanted to hurt her feelings, and now it seems that I may."  
"You should be more accepting. Give it a try. What's to   
lose?" She smiled at him as a light breeze ruffled her bangs, and   
the bright moonlight with the lights from a nearby path brought out   
her facial features a lot clearer.  
"There is a lot to lose. Besides, I get the impression that   
the Emperor does not like me." Another breeze stirred his spiky   
hair.  
Misaki frowned. "He's always looking for a suitor who   
would best benefit the Jurai Empire. He really doesn't care for   
Aeka's feelings. However, I do. Her happiness means the world   
to me, and that is far more important, to me, to have her smile and   
be happy than to merge another kingdom or fleet of ships in with   
Jurai." Her frown intensified slightly. "He can be very rude at   
times, but he can be a caring father as well. He just doesn't show   
it often."  
"I think I understand now. Did he figure that I was going   
to start dating Aeka, and that is why he already doesn't like me?   
Because I have nothing to offer Jurai?"  
"Probably. I haven't talked with him about it yet. That's   
something that we'll discuss later. He's too drunk to make any   
sense right now, anyway," she giggled. "I'm glad he enjoyed   
himself at the table today. It isn't often that we see him smile and   
laugh."  
Russ smiled. "He just never looked my way is all. But   
that's fine. I enjoyed talking with Azaka and Kamidake. They   
told me a bit about that fiasco with Kagato. I'm glad Tenchi and   
they were able to make a difference. I'd hate to think of what   
would've happened if Kagato won." He shuddered.  
"Aeka would probably be dead, as would Yosho, Tenchi,   
Ryoko, and the rest of everyone who came with you today. He   
was merciless and a monster." Misaki started to become enraged   
at herself for not trying to stop him.  
"I'm sorry for bringing that up. Well anyway," he said,   
standing up. "I'm going to go back to my friend's starship that's in   
orbit and let him know everything would be okay for him to bring   
his crew down for a vacation."  
Misaki stood up with him and looked at his muscular   
frame. "You really are handsome. I can see why Aeka likes you.   
I sincerely hope you consider pursuing a relationship with her. It   
would make Funaho, Aeka, Sasami, and me very happy if you did.   
I think it would make everybody really happy to see her in love."  
Russ smiled and shook his head. "Do you have any idea   
how many people have tried to get me to go on a date or get   
involved with her already?"  
"I'm certain that I won't be the last. Everybody wants to   
see you two happy and together."  
"There are better people out there for her in comparison to   
me," Russ said, hanging his head. "I'm not good enough for a   
princess."  
Misaki got right in Russ' face. "That's enough of that.   
Whoever my daughter falls in love with is good enough for her and   
me. She's falling in love with you, and you think that you're not   
good enough for her?" she snarled, quaking with anger. "You're   
full of it. You're the type of man that most women would want to   
become involved with, not because you're a warrior, but because   
you CARE about other people, even more than yourself. And   
Aeka brings a smile to your face whenever you're near her. I   
could see that at the table. Whenever she looked at you, you two   
smiled at each other. I don't understand how you could possibly   
think that!"  
"Because I'm a monster!" Russ nearly shouted. "I've   
killed so many people and my hands are stained with blood from   
every life that I took. You want your daughter to become involved   
with a man who kills on a whim!?"  
Misaki's gaze softened. "You did what you had to do.   
What's done is done. And you wouldn't kill anybody without a   
cause or justification for good. I can see that. You protect the   
innocent, and that's what is important."  
Russ took in a deep breath and held it for a moment, then   
released it slowly, calming himself down a little. "I'm sorry, but I   
don't think I'm suited to take her hand in a relationship, much less   
consider making it permanent. I'm sorry for causing so much   
trouble. I'll go now. Good night, ma'am." Russ started to lift off   
into the air to head back to his fighter but Misaki grabbed his   
ankle.  
"There are no apologies necessary, Russ. I want to let   
you know that you have my blessing if you decide to pursue it   
further. I sincerely hope you do." She released his ankle and he   
continued to float there.  
"Thank you. You do me too much honor. I'm going back   
to my friend's starship to tell him about tomorrow and Startica, and   
then I'll be back. I also need some time to think about all of this.   
Good night, and sleep well, your highness."  
"You too, Russ." She looked after him as he took off to   
the sky and casually flew back to the landing pad where his fighter   
waited.  
  
After a short visit with Tom, Russ cruised around in space   
above the planet, thinking about his previous conversation with   
Misaki. The thing that weighed most on his mind was her   
persistence in getting him involved with Aeka. Everybody seemed   
to be doing that ever since he landed on Earth. It was creepy. And   
in truth, he was attracted to her, even though he didn't show it.   
The thought of rejection or refusal was too much to consider, and it   
was the last thing he ever wanted. Unfortunately, he decided the   
risk was too great, and he began heavily debating with himself   
whether or not to maybe move to a different part of the planet,   
rather than stay with Tenchi and his family.  
He rounded one of the moons in orbit around Jurai and   
continued debating with himself. So what if everybody thought he   
should hook up with Aeka. In the end, the choice was his, and his   
alone. However, the last thing he wanted to do was make people   
feel bad, no matter what the circumstance. But sometimes, it was   
necessary.  
Why did Misaki come out to him and immediately start   
talking about her daughter? Did Aeka ask her mother to do that, or   
did she do that of her own free will? Russ shook his head in mild   
amusement. What mothers won't do for their children. It was   
touching, to say the least. She wants her daughter to be happy, but   
why choose him? Why choose a man who was as violent as they   
come, and who fought for almost his entire life, and on top of that,   
wasn't the same race as her? Even Tenchi was part Jurian, as he   
learned a bit earlier in the day.  
Russ flew his fighter over top of the Star Destroyer in   
front of the bridge, doing a wing-wave as he soared by. The two   
warships had gone off somewhere else, so it was now alone.   
Didn't matter anyway, since it was far more powerful than those   
other vessels.  
Thinking about what would happen if he did become   
involved was very appealing. He thought about what would be his   
first kiss and the first time he would make love with such a   
beautiful woman. Quickly shoving those thoughts into the back of   
his mind, he shook his head. It was time to get his mind out of the   
gutter. But still, wouldn't it be nice to have her by his side,   
smiling that gorgeous smile of hers, with her sister at his side as   
well? Having her touch and sweet voice lull him to sleep at night?   
And possibly having her comfort him when he was feeling down?   
All of it was tantalizing and appealing, but he figured that it just   
wouldn't work. Aeka was royalty; Russ was a barbarian of sorts.   
It just wouldn't work. Or if it did work, the relationship would just   
be too rocky, he thought to himself. They were too different to be   
compatible with each other.  
Tenchi and Ryoko both entered his mind. Those two are   
different like night and day. Tenchi was raised as a normal   
earthling, going to school and doing his chores like everybody else.   
Ryoko, on the other hand, was a most wanted space pirate at one   
time. She was violent and had killed many, but Tenchi had never   
harmed a fly in his entire life. How in the world did they become   
so attached to each other? It didn't seem possible. Those two   
seemed to be made for each other, but what about him and Aeka?   
Could the same type of relationship work between them?  
Russ shook his head and turned his fighter around, and   
made another pass near the Star Destroyer, just a few dozen meters   
away from the hull. He circled around and flew past the docking   
bay, and came around on top once more. A small flashing light on   
one of the consoles caught his attention. He had an incoming   
transmission.  
"Russ! What are you doing?" came Tom's voice. "Quit   
buzzing us, okay? You're making a couple people nervous."  
"Oh, boo hoo. Come on out here and make me," Russ   
challenged with a snicker.  
"Hmmm, so you think you're a good fighter jock now, is   
that it? I think I'll have to come out there and teach you a lesson,   
rookie." Russ heard Tom give a few orders to a couple of his   
crewmembers, and the starship began to pull itself out of orbit.   
The ship moved out between the moons and the planet and came to   
a stop. "I'll be out there in a few minutes," he informed Russ.  
"Okay. See you then," Russ said, buzzing the bridge once   
more. He laughed when he did, enjoying himself.  
A green turbolaser blast lit up the cockpit, startling Russ   
and causing him to veer off his current course. He wasn't hit and   
his shields were at two hundred percent, so it must've been a   
warning shot. "Oh, so you want to go up against the best starship   
killer in the quadrant, is that it?" Russ said to himself, setting his   
lasers and ion cannons to practice mode, which lowered their   
output to almost nil. Swinging his fighter around, he opened fire   
on the Star Destroyer's hull and darted away, as a hail of low   
powered turbolaser bolts lit up the sky all around him. All of them   
except for two missed, which rocked his fighter around a bit. His   
shields were down to one hundred seventy three percent, and he   
quickly shunted his laser energy back to the shields, and setting his   
laser recharge rate to maximum. Of course, his shields were   
actually at two hundred percent the whole time, but the computer   
extrapolated what his actual percentage would've been if this had   
been real combat.  
Quickly dodging from side to side and avoiding the   
barrage of green plasma, he turned around and charged the starship   
again, and opened fire as soon as his laser cannons got within   
range. Several plasma bolts slammed into Russ' fighter, causing it   
to shudder violently. Still making a beeline directly for the   
starship, he continued to fire and dodge, avoiding the lasers   
wherever possible. Aiming directly at the bridge, Russ fired a   
salvo of lasers directly in the middle of it, where the captain   
normally would have been. Speedily and skillfully maneuvering   
his fighter to the side, he flew under the bridge but over the hull,   
keeping on a few meters away from the support structure that held   
the bridge, with an enormous amount of lasers following his path.  
An additional red blip appeared on his radar a few   
moments later. "Ahhh, Tom's out here now. Let's see what he's   
flying." Russ continued to dodge the laser bolts, which were now   
becoming sporadic, and then stopped altogether. Flying under the   
Star Destroyer unimpeded, he approached Tom and his fighter. "A   
Tie Advanced. How quaint," Russ taunted over the   
communications equipment.  
"Shut up. I'm going to fry your ass. Get ready," came   
the response.  
Russ reset his combat computer to keep score and flew off   
a ways. He came to a stop and faced Tom, who remained under   
his Star Destroyer, facing Russ.  
Finally losing patience, Russ slammed his throttle to full   
as his fighter threw him back into the seat, accelerating at several   
g's. Tom did the same with his fighter, and they both met a little   
less than halfway. Just before getting in range, Russ opened fire   
with his laser cannons, scoring a few hits on Tom's fighter as he   
veered away. He quickly snapped his fighter back toward Russ   
and opened fire with his own laser cannons, scoring a couple hits,   
but being pegged a few more times when his opponent acquired   
another target lock. They finally got so close together that they   
had to veer off a little to avoid a collision, and they roared past   
each other.  
The Jurian air traffic controller noticed the two fighters   
engaged in a firefight, and saw the starship taking potshots at one   
of the fighters. However, they noticed none of the ships were   
acquiring any damage, but they sent out the same two warships   
that escorted them in earlier to make sure nothing would go wrong.  
The two warships approached the battling trio and came   
to a stop several kilometers away, watching their battle tactics and   
estimating their firepower, which was substantially lower than they   
originally expected, but much higher than their own practice mode.   
They couldn't figure out whether this was their full power or not.  
Continuing to watch, several more fighters launched from   
the capital ship and joined in the fray, and they eventually divided   
into two teams. They watched the fighters zoom all over the place,   
pulling twists and turns that seemed almost inhuman, trying to   
avoid laser fire or attempting to get the enemy ship in the   
crosshairs.  
It wasn't long before nearly every fighter onboard the Star   
Destroyer was launched and a massive furball ensued. Green laser   
fire lit up the sky around them, and a few spots of blue ion cannon   
fire was also detected. The crowd, who was watching the group   
practice, also increased in size. Five Jurian warships, multiple   
cruisers, and even multiple galaxy police ships watched the fray in   
amazement. A small fleet of Jurian fighters appeared a few   
moments later. Finally, a communications channel was opened   
from the Jurians to the Star Destroyer, inviting them to a contest to   
see who was better. Of course, it was readily accepted, as all   
three-dozen imperial fighters regrouped and prepared to take on   
the new challengers. The Star Destroyer turned toward their   
opponents as well and prepared to do battle.  
A Galaxy Police cruiser signaled for the match to begin,   
and a massive firefight between the Jurian military, and Tom's   
Imperial forces, began. It was almost immediately decided who   
would be the winner just within the first barrage. Tom's fighters   
were too small, too fast, and too powerful to be countered with the   
larger, slower, but agile fighters of Jurai. The capital ships   
couldn't acquire a target lock on the fighters either, and they began   
to get pelted under a hailstorm of green laser fire. It wasn't long   
before the computer calculated that the first ship to bite the dust   
was Kinto-oh, falling in just under two minutes. No losses for   
Tom's team, and most of the fighters were still over a hundred   
percent in shield strength. The Star Destroyer remained off in the   
distance a little ways, not engaging in the fray yet.  
Several Jurai fighters bit the dust at the same time as   
another capital ship went down, and then was counted out of the   
match. Still no losses tallied for the Imperial fighters as they   
continued their vicious onslaught, shunting laser energy to the   
shields or allowing them to regenerate on their own as they   
prepared for another assault.  
  
Only a mere half hour after the battle began, the   
challenging Jurai fleet laid in mock smoking ruins. They were   
royally trashed, and the Star Destroyer put the two Galaxy Police   
cruisers that joined in the fray that aided the Jurians, to mock rest.   
Zero losses for Tom and his group.  
"I'm very proud of you, men!" Tom announced over the   
comm. system. "That was some awesome fighting. We need to   
practice more often like that instead of the holodeck. Live fire   
exercises are very good for training. And thanks to the Jurians for   
playing," Tom added, trying to hide his humor.  
The large group of ships dispersed, and the thirty-six   
imperial fighters began making their way back to the hanger bay.  
"Thanks, Tom. I enjoyed that. Just like old times,   
almost. Except this is far more fun than playing it on a computer,"   
Russ told Tom, as he flanked the Tie Advanced.  
"You're right. Well anyway, I'm going to head on off to   
bed. Thanks for clearing up everything with Jurai's emperor. I   
appreciate that."  
"Not a problem. See you tomorrow."  
"Be sure to say hi to your girlfriend for me, okay?" Tom   
chuckled, poking fun at Russ again.  
A loud groan answered him and his fighter shook when   
Russ planted a laser blast into Tom's shields. "I've already had   
enough about that for one day. You and Aeka's mother are both   
trying to play matchmaker. Enough, already."  
Tom laughed. "Okay, okay. You win. Talk to you   
tomorrow."  
"Yeah. See you later." Russ banked off and returned to   
Jurai, landing on the pad where they originally disembarked. The   
escort transport was gone, recalled back to the Star Destroyer.   
Russ hopped out of his fighter and locked it down, and turned to go   
back into the palace, but someone was standing at the edge of the   
pad. "Oh no, now what?" Russ quietly mumbled to himself.   
Putting on a smile, he walked over to the figure, which gradually   
became clearer as he got closer to it.  
"Hi. Did you have fun?" Aeka asked.  
"What are you doing out here, Princess? Shouldn't you   
be in bed?" Russ asked.  
"I wasn't really that tired. I saw that your fighter was   
gone and I got worried," she said, concerned. "After I saw that, I   
talked to the air traffic controller and he said there was a massive   
fight involving your friend's ship and a bunch of fighters."  
"We were practicing. I haven't done that in a long time.   
It was a lot of fun." Russ smiled and began walking down the   
steps to the ground.  
"Isn't that dangerous?"  
"No. Well, a little. We had our ships configured for   
practice mode. The laser bolts we fire aren't even strong enough   
to phase the shields. We just keep score of how many hits we   
make in comparison with how many shots we take. Plus the   
computer can extrapolate how much damage we would've had."  
"Did you get destroyed at all?"  
"Nope. Trashed everybody who challenged me. Tom   
was the most difficult target though. Even though he had the   
inferior craft, he is a very skilled pilot. I still took him down,   
though," Russ said triumphantly. "But anyway, I'm going to go to   
bed now. Thank you for being so concerned about me."  
If it were light enough to see her face clearly, Russ   
would've seen her blush. "It's okay. I almost thought you ran off   
after talking to my mother or something."  
"Why would I do that?" Russ asked, knowing full well   
why he would have. He only asked to see what she thought.  
"Well, mother told me that you avoided all attempts at   
relationships and things like that. Or ran away from them. I hope   
you don't run away from me," she said, tears starting to well up in   
her eyes. One of them trickled down her cheek. "As you know,   
everybody I have given my heart to has thrown it away or rejected   
it. And now, you've almost captured my heart."  
"Aeka, please. I'm not the man you think I am. I may be   
kind and caring, but there is another side of me which I haven't   
told you about."  
"I know. Mother told me about that too. I don't care   
about that."  
"You should. I hurt people, and I hate myself for that   
which I must do."  
"It's the cause that I care about. I could care less if you   
destroyed a whole planet if it was evil." She looked up into his   
eyes with nothing but sincerity.  
"You should, though. It's a part of me that you need to   
see and realize."  
"I do, though. I just really hope that you eventually come   
to like me as I have with you." She carefully grasped his arm and   
held it, walking by his side, slowly.  
Russ had an urge to pull away, but he restrained himself   
and let out a deep sigh. "I don't know. I just don't know right   
now. I have no idea what love feels like. Some say it hits you like   
a ton of bricks, others say you never know it until you lose the   
person you care about. I just don't know."  
Aeka looked into his eyes and saw a war of emotions   
swirling in them. "I do wish you would come to terms with   
yourself and take a chance with me. It would mean a lot to both of   
us if you did."  
"I know. I just… need more time to think about it. But   
right now, it's too soon."  
She giggled quietly. "I didn't mean you had to decide   
NOW. Just think about it for the future."  
"I have always thought about it. I've been thinking about   
it since the first girl who had an attraction to me tried to get me on   
a date." He shuddered. "But as of right now, I need to focus on   
the upcoming task with Zorpheus."  
"I understand." They walked in silence for a few   
moments. "Are you afraid of what my dad is going to think?"  
"No. He can think whatever he wants. He'll never   
change my mind. And I won't let him control your future either,"   
he said, looking into her eyes. She gasped slightly and returned his   
gaze. "Everybody has a right to do as they please. I won't let   
someone else dictate another person's future. That's one thing that   
I absolutely cannot stand."  
She continued to smile at him. "Thank you… for   
everything. It has been a wonderful two weeks with you, and I   
hope to spend a lot more time with you as well."  
Russ raised an eyebrow for a moment. "What are you   
saying?"  
"I'm just telling you how nice it has been since you came   
to live with us. You've been so good and kind to Sasami and   
myself, and everybody else. In a way, you're very much like   
Tenchi. But you're so different too. But your qualities are just as   
attractive to me as Tenchi's were."  
Russ blushed. "Thank you, Princess."  
Aeka shook her head. "Stop calling me that. To you, my   
name is Aeka," she said, firmly.  
"Yes ma'am," Russ said, grinning.  
"Aeka! My name is Aeka! Not Princess, not Your   
Highness, and not Ma'am! Okay?" she said, frowning up at him.  
"Okay, okay. I was only kidding." Russ grinned down at   
her.  
They reached the palace entrance and went inside,   
walking to their rooms.  
"Well, I'll see you tomorrow, Aeka. Sleep well, okay?"   
Russ said, nodding his head toward her and pushing his door open.  
"You too, Russ. Good night." She watched him close the   
door and she sighed to herself, proceeding to her own room. She   
pushed open her door and stepped inside, and Sasami with Ryo-  
Ohki were lying on the extra bed, both sound asleep. She quickly   
undressed and put on her nightclothes, then slid into bed, thinking   
about what her mother told her.  
  
"Don't worry too much, Aeka. I think he's attracted to   
you as well. Just don't pressure him, and he will come around in   
time," Misaki told her.  
"I know mom, but when?"  
"Wait until his major concern is over with. That was the   
main reason he said he was going to hold off on a relationship.   
Once that is over, he will make a choice. I'm confident that he   
will."  
"I guess you're right, mom," Aeka said, her face   
downcast. "I just hope I can wait that long."  
"You have before! Look at how long you waited for   
Tenchi! If you truly love someone, you should be willing to wait   
forever," she argued. "I will be waiting with you, Aeka. I want to   
see you happy. Your happiness means more to me than the entire   
empire itself." Misaki sighed. "Just be patient. He's one in a   
million, that's for sure."  
"Okay, mom. Thank you." Aeka embraced her mom,   
letting out all of her pent up stress.  
  
Aeka smiled to herself as she allowed sleep to take her   
mind and body into a night of blissful slumber. 


End file.
